


Whiskey and Lilies

by orphan_account



Category: Women's Soccer RPF
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-14
Updated: 2017-04-21
Packaged: 2018-06-08 10:04:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 22
Words: 59,727
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6850282
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU: Meeting new people is a gift. Learning about them is a journey in itself. The problem is they can keep secrets that you may find out about at the worst time possible. When Hope walked into the bar that night, she wasn't expecting the freckle-faced bartender to be the highlight of her week.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Here's chapter one! Be prepared for a bit of a roller coaster ride with these two. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy!
> 
> There will be a pretty big plot twist. ;) Any guesses?

 

 

Carli enjoys her mornings. She enjoys the alone time, the early-morning jogs, the peacefulness. The good thing about being roommates with Hope is that the goalkeeper almost always sleeps in. When they don’t have training or some sort of early-morning meeting, Hope sleeps until at least 9 o’clock. So when she hears footsteps coming down the stairs, she’s immediately confused. It’s only 7:30 and Carli’s relaxing in the kitchen, having her morning coffee. She turns around to question Hope, only to see a stranger walking towards the front door. A blonde, maybe Carli’s height, wearing a mini skirt and heels, clearly disheveled. ‘Fucking Hope.’ Carli thinks as she watches the woman stumble her way out of the house.

 

When Hope finally makes her way downstairs at around 9:30, she sees a smirk playing at Carli’s lips. Hope shakes her head. “Don’t.” She says, walking past the midfielder to make a new pot of coffee. “I didn’t even hear you come in last night.” Carli says, letting her friend off the hook, for now. Hope shrugs. “We didn’t get back here until like 2. You were probably dead to the world.” She counters. Carli sighs as she watches Hope make her way around the kitchen. “You know, having a new girl here every few nights isn’t going to help anything.” Hope turns around to shoot Carli a glare. “Just because you’re basically married doesn’t mean I have to follow suit.” She responds. Carli’s been with her boyfriend, Brian, for just over three years. They’ve talked about moving in together, but Brian wants to stay in New Jersey, while Carli is content living with Hope in Seattle, for now.

 

Hope sits down at the breakfast bar as she waits for the coffee to brew. “Who’d you go out with?” Carli asks. Hope’s been going out more and more recently. It, honestly, worries the midfielder. She knows how Hope can get when she drinks and one of these days, Carli’s almost expecting to get a call from Hope asking her to bail her ass out of jail. “I just went to the bar to have a couple drinks with Pinoe.” Carli rolls her eyes. ‘Should have known.’ She thinks. Pinoe has always been a partier. “You can’t keep doing this forever, you know.” She states, looking at the taller woman. Hope shrugs. “I’m just having a good time, Car, relax.”

 

“I might believe that if you weren’t fucking every girl you see. You can’t just drown out your pain, Hope, because at the end of the day it’s still gonna be there.” She says. Hope stands up to grab a mug, while Carli continues, “I know she hurt you, but you’re just hurting yourself by doing this.” Hope scoffs and turns to look at her friend. “I’m not hurting myself. I’m having a good time, just like I did before I met _her_.” She spits out. “I’m not committing again, Carli. It’s not happening, so for now, I’m doing what I want. I wasted too much time on someone who didn’t give a fuck about me in the end.” She finishes, before turning away to pour her coffee.

 

Carli sighs and watches as Hope grabs her mug and sits down at the breakfast bar, again. It’s clear to her that Hope’s wounds are still very much open and there’s no point in arguing with her on it. “Okay.” Carli says, finally. Hope knows that Carli hates that she’s been sleeping around and probably drinking too much for her own good. So when the midfielder finally concedes after months of bickering over it, she’s pretty shocked. She looks at her, suspiciously. “Okay? As in you’re gonna get off my back about it?” She asks. Carli shrugs. “It’s not like you listen to me anyway. Do what you want, you’re an adult. Just be careful.” She responds, seriously. Hope puckers her lips and nods, before taking a long drink from her steaming mug. “Okay.” She whispers, in response.

 

* * *

 

 

The next few weeks are relatively low key for the roommates. It’s the off-season and an off-year for the national team so they have a few months off before they start camp in February for the Algarve cup. Carli keeps training hard both by herself and with James Galanis. Sometimes Hope will train with her too, but lately, she’s been training by herself. Hope sighs, as she makes her way into the house. She has a splitting headache and she feels like shit. She locks the front door behind her and heads straight for the living room, plopping herself down on a couch and resting her eyes.

 

It isn’t long before she hears footsteps coming towards her. “Late night?” Carli asks, as she walks passed the couch, a filled garbage bag in hand. “Shut up.” Hope groans. She hears the front door open and the rustle of the trash bag. Carli walks back in quickly after and stops in front of Hope, who’s sprawled across the couch. “How did you train this morning? You look like shit.” Carli asks, taking in the appearance of her best friend. Hope opens one eye to glare at the other woman. “Thanks.” She quips, sarcastically.

 

“I’m grabbing you some water and Advil. Brian’s in town with Nate and we’re going out with them tonight. Be ready by 7.” Carli states, as she walks away. Hope shakes her head to herself. “I’m not going!” She calls out, before cringing at the pain the loud noise caused her. Minutes later, Carli returns with a bottled water and three Advil capsules. “Take this.” She says, softly. Hope sighs and forces herself to slowly sit up. She takes the pills from Carli’s outstretched hand and puts them in her mouth, swallowing them back with water. “Thanks.” She says, softly, before plopping back down on the couch. “We’re going to The Barrel to get a couple beers. No big deal. Please come with us.” Hope sighs and brings her forearm to cover her eyes. There’s no way she can leave Carli hanging. “Fine.” She says, simply. “Wake me up at 5.” Carli smirks to herself at her victory. “Will do.” She responds, before walking upstairs to call Brian.

 

“Car, I’m not going.” Hope says a few hours later, walking down the stairs of their shared home. “Yes you are.” Carli shouts back from the bathroom. Hope rolls her eyes to herself as she makes her way to her best friend. “Why are we doing this, anyway?” She asks. Carli stops applying her mascara for a moment to look at the taller woman. “You’re already ready?” Carli asks, ignoring the question. Hope gives her a pointed look. “Because Brian and his friend want to get drinks and I don’t want to deal with both of them by myself.”

 

Hope rolls her eyes. “You owe me.” Hope grumbles, before walking away and taking a seat on a kitchen stool. She scrolls through her Facebook page, casually, while she waits. “You better hurry! We’re gonna be late.” She calls out, looking towards the bathroom. Carli comes out a few minutes later. She makes her way into the living room and puts on a pair of black sneakers, before motioning to Hope that it’s time to go. “You clean up well, Solo.” She mentions, as the pair walk out the front door. Hope smacks the shorter woman’s ass, in response, earning herself a glare from Carli. “He knows this isn’t a double date, right?” Hope asks once they’re in Carli’s car. “I’m pretty sure he’s even more gay than you are.” She responds, rolling her eyes a little bit at the question.

 

Once their inside the bar, Carli immediately spots Brian, who waves them over to their table. After the introductions, Carli and Nate, Brian’s friend, start talking about soccer. Hope zones out of the conversation, allowing her eyes to wander across the bar. It’s a casual place. The atmosphere is relaxed and the country theme sets a tone. There’s a good amount of people there for a Thursday night, but it’s not uncomfortably crowded either. “I’m going to get a drink.” Hope mumbles, before leaving the table and making her way through the dining room. She finds an open spot at the bar and takes a seat.

 

“What can I get you?” One of the bartenders asks. He gives Hope a leering glance that makes her stomach churn. “Whiskey on ice.” She responds, shortly. He gives her a smirk and a slight nod, before turning and making her drink, before getting pulled into a conversation with another customer. To Hope’s pleasure, the other bartender grabs the drink and starts walking towards her. “I think he made this for you. Gets distracted easily, that one.” Hope glances at the woman in front of her. She’s young, in her early twenties, at most. She has piercing hazel eyes that immediately capture Hope’s attention. “Thank you.” Hope replies, giving the woman a small smile. “I haven’t seen you here before.” The woman mentions. Hope shrugs. “Never been.” She responds, simply, looking the woman up and down. The bartender raises an eye brow at her blatant display.

 

“Well I’m Kelley. You know, in case you decide you like it here.” She gives Hope a wink and a cocky grin, before turning to walk away. “You’re not even gonna ask me my name?” Hope calls after her, clearly confused by Kelley’s change in tone. Kelley turns back towards her, giving her a shrug. “You can tell me next time.” Hope tilts her head at the woman. ‘Next time.’ Hope scoffs, softly, to herself. She grabs her drink and makes her way back over to the table, where Carli and Brian are speaking quietly amongst themselves. “Where’d Nate go?” Hope asks, as she sits down. “Both of you left us to go flirt.” Carli replies, motioning towards the bar. Hope glances over her shoulder and, surely enough, Nate is having a very animated conversation with the male bartender. Hope raises her eye brows at her clear misunderstanding of their prior interaction. “I wasn’t flirting.” Hope finally says.

 

Carli scoffs. “Oh, please. That was flirting if I ever saw it.” She says, confidently. Hope glances back over to the bar, allowing her eyes to fall on Kelley. She’s much shorter than Hope. Her hair is pulled up into a tight bun. ‘She’s hot, that’s for sure.’ Hope thinks to herself. Kelley glances her way and catches Hope’s eye. The goalkeeper turns back around as quickly as she can, but doesn’t miss the smirk Kelley gives her when she caught her staring. “Smooth.” Brian says, cheekily. Hope shoots him a heavy glare. “Shut up, Gumby.” She counters. Carli rolls her eyes at the nickname that Hope gave him years ago.

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy!

 

 

Ever since that night, Hope hasn’t been able to stop thinking about that cocky grin on Kelley’s face. It’s been a few weeks since then and Hope’s brought home a handful of girls from the club, to Carli’s dismay. She doesn’t know why she does it. Maybe it makes her feel good about herself, maybe it distracts her from the pain that still lingering deep inside her gut, or maybe she just really likes hot women, but she doesn’t care about the reasoning, she just does it. They never stay for breakfast and she doesn’t remember their names.

 

Then one day, she has the day off of training. She made plans with Pinoe to go out and have some drinks. For whatever reason, Hope suggests The Barrel. There’s an off-chance that Kelley will be working and Hope’s willing to take that chance if it means she might see the girl again. She’s drawn to her, for some reason, in a way that she hasn’t been drawn to anyone since she met Ali. It scares the shit out of her, but she’s unable to fight against her instinct. So she and Pinoe head out to the bar at around 9 o’clock on a Tuesday night.

 

“Damn, is there no one here?” Pinoe asks, as she pulls into the rather empty parking lot. There’s only around 10 other cars parked in the lot. Hope shrugs, in response, before fixing her hair in the mirror and stepping out of the car. “So this bartender’s hot? Like Ali hot?” Hope shoots the blonde a light glare. Pinoe grimaces and mutters an apology. “She’s hotter than Ali.” Hope responds, easily. She’s never really compared the two because she tries to keep her ex out of her head as much as possible.

 

The two walk into the building and head straight for the bar, which is almost empty. There’s one couple sitting at the far end of the counter, watching a hockey game. Hope takes off her jacket and puts it on the back of her bar seat, while Pinoe elects to keep hers on. Just as they sit down, Kelley pops her head up from where she was bent down behind the counter. She gives them a professional smile, before realization floods her face and she shoots Hope a slight smirk. “Hey.” She says, her eyes falling to Hope’s.

 

Pinoe’s eyes flicker between the pair, before she clears her throat, dramatically. “Can I have a water, please?” She asks, breaking whatever weird vibe that was happening. Kelley’s eyes shoot to Pinoe and she nods, a slight blush flooding her face. “Of course.” She says. Hope gives her a drink order of her own and Kelley grabs them both their chosen drinks. “Let me know if you need anything else.” She says, quickly, before walking to her other customers. “What was that?” Pinoe asks, biting back a laugh. Hope smiles, amusedly. “I have no idea.” She answers, honestly. Pinoe leans in, close to Hope’s ear. “You banging her tonight?” She whispers. Hope chuckles and glances to the bartender, who’s making some sort of mixed drink for another customer. “Maybe.” She answers, shrugging her shoulders, confidently.

 

“Carli told me you had a hot one Saturday night.” Pinoe says, a little bit too loudly, raising her eye brows suggestively. Hope rolls her eyes. “She was alright. I tried getting her out of the house before Carli woke up but that didn’t work out, obviously.” Hope says, laughing softly at the memory of Carli walking into Hope’s room to wake her up only to find a naked stranger instead. Pinoe shakes her head. “You’re out of control.” She says, jokingly, before finishing her water in one, long, sip. Hope shrugs and opens her mouth to respond, before she’s cut off. “You guys want another round of drinks?” Kelley asks, earning nods from the duo.

 

By their third drink, the other couple had made their way out, leaving Hope and Pinoe the only pair left at the bar. The dining area still had plenty of customers, leaving Kelley busy making drinks. As the night slows down, however, the bartender has more free time. Just after the pair ordered another round of drinks, Pinoe’s phone begins to vibrate on the bar counter. “Sera?” Hope asks, knowingly. Pinoe nods and grabs her phone. “Be right back.” She mutters, before making her way outside. Hope sighs and glances to the flat screen TV. “You never told me your name.” Kelley mentions, as she places a drink in front of Hope, who raises an eye brow and takes a sip. “It’s Hope.” She mentions, twirling the mixing straw around in the glass.

 

“Well it’s nice to officially meet you, Hope.” She says, feeling the way Hope’s name fell from her lips. “You didn’t really give me a chance last time I was here.” She mentions, jokingly. Kelley nods. “You were cocky. Needed to knock you down a couple pegs.” She counters. Hope tilts her head at the blunt response. “You seem pretty cocky yourself.” Kelley rolls her eyes. “I’m a bartender, I have to have some sort of confidence to get tips around here.” She states, honestly. Hope puckers her lips and gives her a slight nod, in understanding.

 

“Who’s your friend?” Kelley asks, as she wipes down the counter. “Megan.” Hope responds, glancing to the door to ensure Pinoe wasn’t returning just yet. “How’d you meet her?” Kelley asks, curiously. Hope takes another sip from her drink and spins the bar stool back and forth. “We’re teammates.” She says, earning a confused look from Kelley. “I play soccer, professionally.” Hope elaborates. A look of realization covers Kelley’s face and she looks at Hope with furrowed brows. “Wait, you’re not…you’re Hope Solo?” She stutters. Hope looks at her for a second, semi-surprised that she knows who she is.

 

“That’s me.” She says, simply. Kelley raises her eye brows. She leans forward against the counter. “Hmmm.” She hums, in thought. Hope panics, internally. Normally the girls she brings home don’t have any idea of who she is. The team got a little bit of popularity after last year’s Olympics, but she’s nowhere near a household name. Hope knows she’s gay, she’s only ever been attracted to girls, but with everything that’s happening, she’s not ready for the world to know it, just yet. The fact that Kelley knows who she is and knows that she’s taken an interest in her is alarming. The woman could easily out her to the media. “Whatever you’re freaking out about, you can stop.” Kelley says. Hope glances at her for a second. She must have been more animate about her thought process than she originally thought.

 

“I’m not gonna tell anyone, if that’s what you’re thinking.” Kelley mentions. Hope locks eyes with Kelley, who’s turned out to be much more insightful than Hope had planned for. The goalkeeper nods after finding no lie behind Kelley’s words. “Do you wanna grab a drink with me after your shift?” Hope asks. “You know, without blondie here to dampen the mood.” She jokes, giving Kelley a soft smile. Kelley makes a face and Hope immediately knows she about to be turned down. “I can’t.” She says. Hope looks at her, expectantly. “I have plans. You’re gonna have to find another girl to bring home.” She finishes, shrugging a shoulder and sauntering away.

 

Pinoe returns minutes later and the two finish their drinks, before paying. “I’ll meet you outside.” Hope says, giving Pinoe a look. The blonde understands, immediately, and waves a ‘goodbye’ to Kelley before making her way out. Hope leans against the bar and waits for Kelley to give her the time of day. The woman’s been avoiding her as much as possible since she made the rather snide comment to Hope. “When are you free?” Hope calls out, softly. The bartender freezes, before glancing over her shoulder at the brunette. “I’m not.” She answers, simply.

 

Hope narrows her eyes. “What do you mean, you’re not?” She asks, slightly baffled. Kelley looks at her, not backing down in the slightest. “I mean, I’m not free. I don’t do one night stands.” She motions with her hands, walking closer to Hope so she’s on the other side of the counter that Hope’s leaning on. “I’m not some girl you can take home and then kick out before the sun rises, I’m not gonna fall for the pretty blue eyes and the stupid grin on your face. If that’s what you want then go somewhere else, because you’re not finding it here.” She states, seriously, leaning in close to Hope so she can keep her voice down. Hope is taken aback, slightly, at the woman’s response. Kelley must have heard her bantering with Pinoe earlier. She raises her eye brows and leans back so she’s standing up straight.

 

“Okay.” The goalkeeper concedes. She shrugs her shoulders and looks into the hazel eyes in front of her. She turns to leave when she hears Kelley scoff at her. She turns to look at the woman, who has her arms crossed in front of her and a baffled look on her face. “What?” Hope asks, confusedly. The bartender sure knows how to send mixed signals. “So that’s what you came here for? You wanted a one-night thing? Now that I’m not willing to throw myself at you you’re leaving?” Kelley fires off questions. Hope raises her arms, before letting them fall back to her sides. “What do you want? A romantic date? Long walks on the beach? Because you’re not gonna find that here.” She counters, repeating Kelley’s earlier statement, before turning and walking out of the bar without looking back.

 

Pinoe’s waiting for her in the car, typing out a text when Hope plops herself into the seat and pulls the seat belt over her lap, abruptly. “Rejected?” Pinoe asks, slightly surprised. Of all the times she and Hope have gone out together, Hope’s never been turned down. It’s always perplexed the blonde midfielder how someone who’s usually so introverted can become a womanizer in two seconds flat. “She said, ‘I don’t do one night stands’. We all know I’m not getting into another relationship any time soon, so…” She trails off, scrolling through the unread texts she’s received from other girls. Pinoe nods, slightly, before putting the car in reverse and backing out of the spot.

 

“Don’t be mad at me, but, I mean, it’s been almost a year. Don’t you think a relationship is worth another try?” Pinoe asks, as she drives down the relatively empty roadway. Hope snaps her eyes to the side of Pinoe’s head. “You’re one to talk.” Hope shoots back. Pinoe shrugs, glancing to Hope before settling her eyes on the road in front of her. “Sera and I are getting serious.” She says. Hope furrows her eye brows. “I thought you said she was temporary?” She asks. Pinoe had always said she didn’t want to be in a relationship for a while. It’s what originally made the two become so close. Neither of them wanted to commit and it was fun being around someone who didn’t have strings attached. Pinoe shrugs. “She’s great. I mean, I could fall in love with the girl.” Hope’s eyes widen and she gapes at the blonde. “Fall in love?” She asks. Pinoe rolls her eyes.

 

“Hate to break it to yah, Solo, but we’re getting old. I know you were hurt, or whatever, but you’re not helping yourself by fucking every girl you meet and then kicking them out before you learn their first name.” Pinoe says, in a serious tone. Pinoe’s almost never serious, but when she is, you know she means what she’s saying. “Up to you, but that girl’s a catch, if I do say so myself.” The blonde finishes, waggling her eyebrows at the glaring goalkeeper. Hope sighs and looks out the window, choosing not to respond to her friend. She knows Megan’s right, but even the thought of dating, like actually dating, someone again scares the shit out of her.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If I don't reply to comments it's only because I'm busy and posting new chapters quickly throughout my day. Just know that I read and appreciate every one of them and they truly do keep me motivated to keep writing!
> 
> I hope you liked this chapter..new one will hopefully be up at some point this week!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Progress is made in this chapter! :)
> 
> Hope you like it!

 

 

Hope spends the next week training harder than she has since the end of the NWSL season. She hasn’t gone out since she and Pinoe went to see Kelley and she hasn’t been able to get the bartender out of her mind. It pisses her off. She shouldn’t be so caught up with some girl she doesn’t even know. She works off her frustration in the gym and tries to get the woman’s face out of her head. Hope respects the fact that Kelley didn’t take her bullshit. She didn’t sugar coat it, didn’t play any sort of game, when it came down to it, she told Hope how she felt and it attracted the goalkeeper to the woman even more. Carli has been out of town since yesterday, visiting Brian in New Jersey for a week, so Hope has the house to herself and it gives her plenty of time to think about everything.

 

She allowed herself to feel the pain that she hid away for so long. She sulked around the house, ran herself rugged at the gym, and thought about how she wants to live the rest of her life. Does she want to live life without giving anyone a chance because of one bad breakup? Or does she want to go for it and risk being hurt again? She’s well aware of the fact that she needs to stop being so self-destructive, but is she willing to put herself out there again?

 

As Hope walks back into The Barrel just over a week after she and Kelley last saw each other, she feels unnaturally nervous. It’s almost 10, an hour before the bar closes for the night, so Hope is hopeful that it won’t be busy. When she walks in and sees the bar looking stranded, she lets out a sigh of relief. ‘Now let’s just hope Kelley’s working.’ She thinks, as she walks in. When she sees Kelley making her way out of the kitchen and back behind the bar, she feels her heart rate quicken. She’s never done this before. Usually, girls come to her and she has all the control in the relationship. Hell, when she and Ali first started out, Hope wanted nothing to do with the defender, but Ali pursued her anyway and Hope ended up falling for the brunette.

 

Kelley’s eyes meet hers, as she walks into the bar area. She gives her a challenging look, almost daring her to approach. Hope plops herself down at a barstool and gives Kelley a small smile. Kelley walks over to her and throws a drink menu down on the counter. “What can I get for you?” She asks, as if she doesn’t know Hope at all. Hope rolls her eyes. “I didn’t come for a drink.” She says, softly. She’s resting her chin on her hand, her elbow resting on the counter. “Well then you should be sitting over there.” She says, pointing to the dining area. She walks away before Hope can get a response out. The goalkeeper sighs and watches as Kelley cleans the bar and checks inventory. She waits, patiently, until Kelley finally looks at her. Hope gives her a pleading look and Kelley finally gives in, walking over to her. “What?” She asks, impatiently.

 

“I came to talk to you.” Hope says, confidently. Kelley puts a hand on her hip. “What if I don’t want to talk to you?” She fires back. “Then you could just listen?” The keeper asks, hopefully. Kelley looks towards the dining area, obviously contemplating something in her head. “Fine.” She says, finally, snapping her eyes back to Hope’s. The brunette nods, slowly, choosing her next words, wisely. “I’m sorry if I disrespected you.” She starts, pulling no reaction out of the bartender. “I shouldn’t have.” She states. They fall into a short silence, before Kelley scoffs. “That’s what you came here to say?” She asks, squinting her eyes at Hope, who gapes at the woman. She nods, slowly, trying to gauge if that’s what Kelley wants to hear or not.

 

“Well thanks for the apology. We’re closing in twenty minutes, just so you know.” She says, easily, before turning away from Hope and grabbing half-full liquor bottles, beginning to organize them. “I came to see if you wanted to get dinner with me tomorrow night?” She says, questioningly. Kelley turns her body around and gapes at Hope for a few seconds. She opens her mouth, as if she’s about to speak, but only closes it again. “W-What was that?” She asks, raising her eye brows at the taller woman. Hope suddenly feels nervous. Is she overstepping? Is Kelley not interested? “I-I just thought...” She trails off, her eyes flickering between Kelley and the counter. She internally berates herself. ‘You’re Hope fucking Solo.’ She thinks, trying to give herself some sort of pep talk.

 

She glances at Kelley and sighs. “I came back here hoping you’d want to go on a date with me.” She says, honestly. Kelley looks at her for a few seconds. “No.” She responds, simply. Hope’s eyes widen and she falters a little bit at the blatant rejection. “Okay.” She drags out. “Can I ask why?” She asks, skeptically. “I’ve heard some things about you. I’m not looking to sleep around, Hope. I’m looking for something real.” She responds.

 

“What have you heard about me?” The goalkeeper asks, furrowing her eyebrows, confused as to how Kelley would know anything about her personal life. The bartender shrugs. “Word gets around in this business. From what I hear, you have a revolving bedroom door. I’m not into that.” She says, with a little bite to her words. Hope looks away from the woman. She’s not particularly proud of what she’s been doing, but for Kelley to write her off because of it seems a little extreme. “What does that have to do with you?”

 

“I’m not gonna date someone who fucks everyone she sees. I need stability in my life right now and you seem like quite the opposite of that.” Kelley replies, honestly. Hope clenches her jaw. Her first instinct is to fire back at the shorter woman, but she doesn’t. “I’m asking for one date, not marriage.” She says in response. She looks at Kelley for a few seconds, waiting for an answer. When she doesn’t get one, she shakes her head and stands up. “Don’t say I didn’t try.” She says, before turning and heading towards the door. She sighs to herself, as she walks out into the brisk Seattle night. ‘I shouldn’t have come here.’ She thinks, as she shivers with the breeze.

 

“I like Applebee’s” Hope hears a voice call out. She turns, confusedly, to see Kelley jogging after her. “What?” Hope asks. Kelley finally catches up to her, her breath heavy from trying to run after the goalkeeper. “I like Applebee’s.” She repeats, looking up at Hope. The brunette nods. “Applebee’s it is.” She says. Kelley gives her a hesitant smile. “I’m free tomorrow night.” She says, softly. Hope gives her a smirk. “7 o’clock?” Kelley thinks for a few seconds, trying to remember what her schedule looks like, before nodding. “That works.”

 

“Do you want to meet me there or am I picking you up?” Hope asks, softly. “We can just meet there.” She replies, before taking a step backwards. “I have to go clean up. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Kelley says, giving the taller woman a smile, before turning away and walking quickly back into the restaurant. Hope leans against her car and waits until she sees that Kelley is safely back inside, before she gets into her car and heads back home.

 

* * *

 

 

“I asked her on a date.” Hope says, feeling her cheeks become hot with slight embarrassment. She’s 32 years old and she’s going on a first date with someone new. She rubs her face with her free hand, as she paces around the kitchen. She hears Carli stifle a laugh on the other end of the line. “A date? You? Hope Solo? On a date?” She replies, amusedly. Hope huffs and rolls her eyes. “Yes. A date.” She says, seriously. “You’re ready for that? Weren’t you drunkenly fucking girls like last week?” Carli asks, semi-skeptically. Hope stops pacing and leans against the island.

 

“You think I was happy? Do you really think I was happy when I was getting wasted all the time? I’m over it, Car. You should be happy that this is happening. Why are you making it seem like it’s a bad thing? I’m actually trying here.” Hope spits out, getting frustrated with the lack of support she’s getting from her supposed ‘best friend’. When she had told Pinoe about her date with Kelley, the blonde was ecstatic. She hears Carli sigh. “No, no, that isn’t what I meant. I do think it’s good. I think it’s great and I’m happy that you’re giving someone a chance again.” She says, ensuring Hope that she truly is happy for her.

 

“I’m honestly nervous about it.” Hope mentions. She knows Carli will try and help her out, while Pinoe would just make fun of her for being a ‘pussy’. “You’ll be fine. Just be yourself. Don’t bring out the ‘cocky pro-athlete’ act that you put on to pick up girls. She’s clearly not into that and if you’re really trying to have something real with her then you need to show her who you are.” Hope sighs. She knows that Carli is right, but if she’s being honest with herself, she’s scared of being herself. What if she shows Kelley her true self and the bartender turns her down? Then what? “I know. I will. I’ll be fine.” Hope responds, in faux-confidence. “I’m gonna go shower. I only have a few hours to get ready and I don’t wanna have to rush.” She mentions, pushing herself off the island and heading upstairs. “Okay. You’ll be fine, you big baby. Text me after and let me know how it goes. Remember, only lean in half way and let her close the gap.” Carli says, as if she’s giving a pre-game speech. Hope rolls her eyes. “Got it.” She says, amusedly, before hanging up. She shakes her head, as she turns on the shower. ‘What am I doing?’ She thinks, imagining all of the things that could go wrong tonight.

 

* * *

 

 

Hope wipes at the non-existent wrinkles in her shirt and checks her makeup one last time in her rear-view mirror. ‘As ready as I’ll ever be.’ She thinks, before opening the door and getting out of her car. She looks at the glow of the lights on top of the building, the sign shining through the darkening Seattle night. She locks her car and heads inside. The hostess gives her a small smile, looking at her expectantly. “Welcome to Applebee’s.” She says with a forced smile that screams ‘I hate my job’. “Hi, I’m not sure if the person I’m meeting is here yet?” She says, questioningly.

 

Turns out, Kelley isn’t there yet, so Hope kindly leaves her name with the hostess for when she does show up. ‘If she shows up.’ Hope thinks, grimly. She’s brought to a booth in the back of the restaurant, to Hope’s approval. Once the hostess walks away, she checks her phone. ‘6:55’ gleams, brightly, back at her. She looks up towards the entrance, waiting for the freckled woman to show.

 

‘7:05’ Hope sighs, as she looks at her phone. “Are you sure I can’t get you anything while you wait?” The waitress asks, approaching Hope’s table for the second time. Hope looks up at her and nods. “I’m okay, thank you.” The waitress nods, in understanding. “Just grab me if you need anything.” She says, kindly, before walking away. ‘I’ll just wait until 7:15.’ Hope thinks, as another five minutes’ pass. She tries to remain hopeful, tries not to think about it too much, but as 7:15 comes and passes, she starts thinking of what she’s gonna tell her friends. ‘Oh, she stood me up.’ Hope rolls her eyes. Carli would probably give her a motivational speech, while Pinoe will undoubtedly make fun of her for it for weeks. She scrolls through Instagram, trying to look nonchalant. The last thing she needs is all of Applebee’s to know that Hope Solo got stood up on a fucking date.

 

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last update until Monday! I have to slow myself down a little, I get too excited to post new chapters. I'm dropping a plot twit on you next chapter too. ;)
> 
> This is a big chapter in both length and content.
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

 

 

“Oh my god, I can’t believe you waited. I’m so sorry, I got caught up at work.” Hope looks up to meet panicked hazel eyes. The shorter woman places her purse down across from the goalkeeper and takes off her jacket, before sitting. “It’s okay.” Hope says, easily, giving the woman a smile. Kelley lets out a long breath and puts her hands over her face, clearly embarrassed by her lateness. “I probably would have left by now, if I were you.” Kelley mentions, looking across the table into blue eyes. Hope shrugs. “I didn’t wanna have to tell my friends I got stood up.” She chuckles, amusedly. Kelley rolls her eyes, but she cracks a smile. She sighs. “Well I’m glad you’re still here.” She says, giving Hope an appreciative smile.

 

The waitress comes by and both of them stick with water. “So you’re 32, right?” Kelley asks, starting the conversation. Hope looks at her, skeptically. “What’d you do? Google me?” She asks, an amused smile making its way onto her face. Kelley shrugs. “Of course I did. Needed to make sure you aren’t crazy.” She fires back. Hope shakes her head, rolling her eyes a little bit. “And did I pass your test?” She asks, curiously. Kelley shrugs. “I’m not sure yet. What’s the deal with the ’07 world cup?” Hope stiffens, subconsciously at the mention of the event. She gives Kelley a tight smile. “That’s a story for another time.” She says, simply.

 

Kelley gives her an understanding smile. “Maybe you can tell me on the second date?” She says, questioningly. Hope tilts her head at the forwardness that the shorter woman is showing. “Second date.” Hope agrees with a nod. The waitress brings them their drinks and takes their food order, to Kelley’s delight. She had mentioned to Hope how she hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast because things got so crazy at work. The two discuss lighter topics, rather than delving right into the deep secrets on their first date.

 

Hope learns that Kelley’s 25 years old and she’s from Georgia, where most of her family still lives. She has a brother and a sister and her parents are pretty religious. She moved to Seattle after getting in a pretty heated argument with them (Kelley didn’t want to get into what they argued about). She lives on her own in an apartment downtown and she’s doing pretty well for herself. Hope tells Kelley about herself too. She tells her about where she grew up, in Richland. She talks about her parents, especially her dad. She talks about her brother Marcus and her long road to making it to the national team. Kelley listened to everything she said and seemed genuinely interested. The conversation was easy and Hope felt strangely comfortable talking to the woman.

 

When the bill came, Hope snatched it before Kelley could. “No, seriously let me at least pay my half.” Kelley says, looking at her seriously. Hope gauges her reaction for a few seconds, before shaking her head. “You can pay next time.” Hope says, giving her a smile. Kelley sighs, in defeat, but nods her head. “Okay.” She says, softly. Hope smiles, in victory, and hands the waitress the bill. Kelley takes out her phone and goes to her contacts, creating a new one. “Here, type in your information. That way if one of us is every running late again, we can let the other know.” She says. Hope takes the phone and types in her name and number.

 

“There. Text me so I have yours.” Kelley nods and types out a text before hitting ‘send’. Hope looks at her phone, reading the text. _You look really pretty tonight_. Hope smiles and looks across the table at the woman, who’s confidently looking back at her. She sets up the contact before sending a text back to her. _So do you._ Kelley reads the text and smirks at the goalkeeper. “So when can we do this again?” Kelley asks, as Hope signs the receipt. Hope looks at her and purses her lips, in thought. “Whenever you’re free. We’re in the off-season so I just have to do individual training. I’m free pretty much any night.” She explains, placing the bill on the edge of the table for the waitress to take.

 

“Tomorrow night?” Kelley asks, hopefully. Hope smiles. “Can’t even wait a day to see me again?” She winks, letting the shorter woman know she’s joking. “Nope.” Kelley fires back, easily. Hope rolls her eyes, but nods. “Tomorrow’s good. What do you wanna do?” The goalkeeper asks. “I don’t know.” Kelley replies, thoughtfully. “I could make us dinner at my place.” Hope mentions, casually. Kelley raises her eye brows and looks at the taller woman, pointedly. “Just dinner?” She gets a nod, in response. “Just dinner.”

 

“But I was supposed to pay for our second date.” Kelley remembers, speaking almost petulantly. Hope shrugs. “You can get the third date.” Kelley gives her a small smile. “Okay.” She says, begrudgingly. Kelley’s phone lights up and Hope looks at the screen, instinctively. ‘Donna’ reads out and Hope looks at Kelley curiously. “Sorry. I have to take this.” She says, picking up the phone.

 

“Hello?” She says, in greeting. “Yes, we’re finished. Why?” Hope watches as Kelley furrows her eye brows and almost looks annoyed at whomever she’s speaking to. “I know. I’ll be home in like 20 minutes.” She says. “Okay. Bye.” She finishes, before hanging up the phone. “Sorry. My friend is in town and was seeing where I am.” She says to Hope, rolling her eyes a little bit. Hope nods, in understanding. “Okay, well let’s get you home.” The brunette says, kindly. The pair stand up and walk outside. Hope walks with Kelley to her car, her hands placed in the front pockets of her jeans. “I’ll text you my address so you know where you’re going. Does 7 work again?” Hope asks, as they reach Kelley’s sedan. The freckled woman nods. “That works.” She says, smiling up at the woman. Hope nods, feeling the air change, slightly. ‘Do I kiss her? Do I not kiss her? The date went well, I should kiss her, right?’ She thinks. “Okay, well I’ll see you tomorrow.” Kelley says, smiling at the keeper, before opening her door and getting in. Hope takes that as a no-go for tonight and says ‘goodbye’ to Kelley before walking back to her own car.

 

Hope shoots Carli a text once she’s home letting her know what happened, including the fact that there was no goodnight kiss. She immediately gets ready for bed, exhausted from a long day. By the time she makes it into her bed, she sees her phone is lit up with a text from Kelley. _I had a great time tonight._ It reads, pulling a smile out of the keeper. _I did too. Can’t wait to see you tomorrow._ Hope types back, boldly. She stares at the screen and waits for a response from the other woman. _Goodnight, Hope._ She gets, in reply. Hope scoffs at the response, smiling amusedly. _Goodnight._ She sends the text, before plugging in her phone and rolling over in bed.

 

* * *

 

 

After a long afternoon of training, the last thing Hope wants to do is go food shopping. The only thing that keeps her from ditching the errand is the thought of Kelley. She knows she needs to be rather impressive with whatever it is she cooks. Kelley needs to like whatever she decides to make. She picks out something easy. Spaghetti with a homemade red sauce. It’s nothing special, but perhaps she can impress the bartender, at least a little bit. Hope grunts as she picks up the multiple bags of groceries that she bought and trudges them into the kitchen.

 

She quickly puts all of the items away, before jumping in the shower. She shoots Kelley a text, giving her the address. By the time Hope is ready, it’s just past 6:30. She makes her way around the house, cleaning up as best she can with the little time she has left. When she finally sees it as suitable, she allows herself to relax a little bit. She’s dressed casually, wearing a pair of blue jeans and a plain black t-shirt. She puts on a pair of sneakers, before beginning to prepare the food. Just as put the sauce on the stove, she hears the doorbell ring. She walks quickly to the front door, checking herself in the mirror as she walks by it.

 

Hope opens the door and is met with Kelley holding a bouquet of flowers. Hope’s heart melts a little bit at the gesture. “Hey.” She says, softly. “You didn’t have to bring anything.” She mentions, motioning the shorter woman inside. Kelley smiles and hands the flowers to the brunette anyway, as she steps through the front door. “I couldn’t come empty handed.” She replies with a small smile. “I love lilies.” Hope says, as she shuts the door softly behind her. Kelley’s face darkens to a place that Hope can’t quite decipher. She decides to ignore it, for now. “Come to the kitchen, I just put the sauce on.” Hope says, as she walks past the shorter woman, leading her into the kitchen. “It smells so good.”, Kelley mentions, taking her jacket off as she walks over to the stove and looks at the sauce.

 

Hope places the flowers into a vase, before walking to the stove and stirring the sauce. Kelley leans against the counter next to the stove, looking at the taller woman. “You wanna see the rest of the house?” Hope asks, casually. Kelley nods, taking out her phone to check it, before placing it back in her pocket. Hope places the lid on the pot and takes Kelley’s hand with a shy smile. “It’s really nothing too special. This is the living room, obviously.” She says, as they walk in. Kelley glances around, dropping Hope’s hand and approaching the mantel. “Who’s that?” Kelley asks, pointing to a picture. “Oh, that’s Carli’s family.”

 

“Oh, right. Your roommate.” Kelley mentions. “You said she’s in New Jersey?” She asks, turning to face Hope, who’s leaning against the back of the couch. Hope nods. “She’s visiting her boyfriend until the end of the week.” Kelley nods, in understanding. Hope leads her around the house, answering any questions Kelley asks. They finally make it to Hope’s room and Kelley immediately goes to look at the pictures of Hope that are hanging on the walls. “You were so cute.” Kelley says with a smile, pointing to a picture of Hope and her dad. Hope scoffs. “Were?” She asks, jokingly. Kelley rolls her eyes.

 

“I was only like 5 when that was taken.” Hope mentions, approaching Kelley from behind and looking at the picture over her shoulder. Kelley turns to face her. She smiles up at her and reaches out to give her hand a squeeze. “You’re still cute.” She quips while walking past the older woman. Hope freezes for a few seconds, before following after Kelley, who’d made her way back to the kitchen. “You want anything to drink? I have water, juice, milk, I think I have some soda in here…” The goalkeeper trails off, looking through the fridge. Kelley takes a seat. “Water? If you don’t mind.” She responds, politely. Hope quietly gets two bottles of water and places one in front of the bartender, before tending to the food.

 

“When do you start playing games again?” Kelley asks as she watches Hope makes her way around the kitchen. Hope glances at her. “Not until March. We have a camp in February though.” She replies. Kelley nods, in response. The two make small talk as Hope finishes up with dinner, both of them not willing to delve into heavier topics when their focus isn’t solely on each other. Kelley lets out a groan of approval as Hope places a plate in front of her. “Thank you.” She says, softly, looking up at the goalkeeper through her lashes. Hope gives her a smile, in response, before sitting down across from her. “This is perfect.” Kelley says, looking at Hope appreciatively. “It’s okay?” Hope asks, apprehensively. “It’s probably the best sauce I’ve had. Don’t tell my mom.” Kelley jokes.

 

“Do you even watch soccer?” Hope asks, curiously. The pair moved into the living room, where they’re both nursing a glass of red wine. Kelley grimaces a little bit at the question. “I don’t watch it regularly. I watched the final in 2011.” She replies. Hope scoffs and places a palm on her cheek, in disapproval. “That’s probably the worst game you could have chosen to watch. You didn’t watch the quarterfinal?” She asks, exasperatedly. Kelley makes a face, before shaking her head. “Maybe if I had known your team was filled with a bunch of hotties, I would have been more apt to watch.” Hope rolls her eyes.

 

“There’s no hotties.” Hope states matter-of-factly, unable to hide the small grin on her face. Kelley scoffs. “Are you kidding? I looked at the roster after the first night we met. Alex Morgan, Ali Krieger, Tobin Heath, some lady named Hope Solo. She’s the hottest.” She jokes, smiling at the goalkeeper, who stiffens slightly at the mention of a certain defender. Kelley notices and the smile drops from her face. “What? Why’d you do that?” She asks, pointing to the taller woman. Hope shakes her head, shooting her a kind smile. “I didn’t do anything.” She shrugs. Kelley rolls her eyes, unwilling to let the keeper drop the topic. “Yes you did. You got all weird when I starting talking about your teammates. You jealous?” The bartender asks, curiously. Hope shakes her head, quickly.

 

“No, it’s not that.” She says, simply. “Do you want another glass?” She asks, standing up and motioning to Kelley’s empty wine glass. She nods and holds the glass up for Hope to take. By the time the brunette returns, Kelley is texting someone on her phone. “Talking to your girlfriend?” Hope jokes, placing the filled glass on the coffee table in front of Kelley, who rolls her eyes. “More like my friend, who very much has a penis.” Hope shrugs. “You could be into guys too. I don’t know.” She states. Kelley hesitates, thinking about her response before speaking. “I am. But not this guy.” She says. Hope tilts her head, slightly shocked at the revelation. She’s only gotten the ‘gay’ vibe from Kelley. “Oh.” She responds.

 

Kelley shrugs. “So ’07? What happened? You as crazy as they made you out to be?” Hope stiffens, once again. She was honestly hoping Kelley had forgotten about that. She sighs. “Do you really want to talk about this?” The brunette asks. Kelley leans back against the couch. “Why not?” She shrugs. Hope takes a long sip of her wine. “What do you want to know about it?” Kelley shrugs. “I don’t know. Google has a lot to say about it, but I wanna hear it from you.” Hope sighs, once again, not looking forward to talking about something like this when she’s still getting to know the other woman. “Well what do you already know about it?” Hope asks, not wanting to give Kelley information she already knows.

 

“You got benched and bitched about it to the media.” Kelley states, simply. Hope scoffs. “That’s it? You didn’t look into it?” Kelley shakes her head. Hope takes a deep breath before delving into it. She tells Kelley about her father’s death and how she dedicated the tournament to him only to be replaced by a keeper who hadn’t seen minutes in months. She watched the biggest tournament she’d ever played in go down the drain from the sideline all because the vets wanted to have it their way and their coach didn’t have the balls to go against them. She also tells the woman about the backlash she received from her teammates and the isolation tactics they had used against her. Kelley listens closely to what she has to say and by the time Hope finishes, the bartender almost feels badly for making assumptions. “Wow.” She says, simply. “I didn’t realize it was that big of a deal. They really wouldn’t even ride an elevator with you? That doesn’t seem very professional.” She mentions. Hope smiles, a little bit. “It’s fine. It’s over now. I just don’t really like talking about it. Not one of my prouder moments.” Kelley nods, in understanding.

 

They move to lighter topics, talking about Kelley’s job, Hope’s training schedule, their friends. Hope tells Kelley a little bit about Carli and Pinoe and how they’ve supported her. The subject slowly switches to Kelley’s family and the woman is clearly hesitant to talk about it. “I love them, but my parents have their beliefs and I have mine. I mostly just talk to Jerry and Erin.” She states. Hope nods. “What could you have argued about that put such a wedge between you and your parents?” She asks, carefully. Kelley shakes her head and looks away from the brunette. “I just don’t want to talk about that.” She says, glancing at the goalkeeper. Hope almost pushes, but decides to let it go. “Okay.” She whispers. Kelley feels guilty for hiding something so important, but she needs to see where this goes and if Hope finds out, she’ll be gone before she can even get to know her properly.

 

As the night winds down, Hope calls a cab for Kelley, who’s had one too many glasses of wine to drive. “I can drive. I’m fine.” She says. Hope looks at her skeptically. The woman truly does seem like she would be okay to drive. The wine hasn’t impacted her motor skills, but Hope refuses to take the chance. “Just humor me. I can pick you up in the morning and bring you back here to get your car.” Kelley opens her mouth to argue, but sighs instead. “Fine.” She concedes. She gives Hope a small smile, secretly appreciative that Hope cares so much about her safety. Hope helps Kelley into her jacket. “Thank you for tonight.” She says, placing her hands in her jacket pockets.

 

“I had fun.” Hope replies, leaning against the wall near the front door. Kelley smiles, in response. “Me too.” They hear the sound of a horn and make eye contact. “Text me when you’re home?” Hope asks. Kelley nods, before checking her pockets, making sure she has everything. “Okay. Well, I guess I’ll talk to you soon.” The shorter woman states. Hope nods and watches as the woman starts moving past her. She makes a split second decision and reaches out for her, grabbing the arm of her jacket, gently. Kelley looks at her, clearly confused. Hope tugs on her until the freckled woman gets the point and stands in front of her. Kelley tilts her head, questioningly, while Hope gives her a soft smile.

 

“What are you doing?” Kelley whispers. Hope reaches up and brushes a stray hair out of Kelley’s face, before leaning in. She moves slowly, hoping Kelley will cover the remainder of the distance. When she finally closes the gap, her lips meet the skin of Kelley’s cheek. Kelley had turned her face. She pulls back, her eye brows furrowed at the clear rejection. ‘Have I been reading the wrong signals?’ Hope thinks to herself. “I have to go. I’ll text you.” Kelley states, awkwardly, before making her way to the front door. Hope doesn’t say anything, instead just watching, confusedly, as the woman walks away from her. She waits until she hears the taxi drive away, before she makes her way into the kitchen. She does the dishes, while thinking about the date. Hope was convinced that it went well. Kelley had been sending her flirty glances all night. So why did she turn away the goalkeeper? It’s just a kiss, after all. Hope sighs, as she places the dishes into the dishwasher.

 

_I’m home._ Hope reads the text as she makes her way upstairs to her room. _Glad you’re safe._ The keeper responds, simply. She refuses to try and make conversation if Kelley isn’t interested. Had the bartender been leading her on? Did she just want to be able to say she went on a couple dates with Hope Solo? Hope sighs, trying to convince herself to ignore the part of her brain that’s telling her to ask Kelley about it.  _Are you not interested in me?_ Hope presses send before she can stop herself and she sits, tensely, on her bed as she waits for a reply. _Of course I am. Is this about the kiss?_ Kelley asks, in response. Hope rolls her eyes and types back. _Do you not want to kiss me?_ Kelley sighs, as she reads Hope’s response. If she’s being honest with herself, she completely freaked out when she saw the goalkeeper leaning in.

 

_Obviously I want to kiss you. I got nervous._ Hope rolls her eyes at the lame excuse. _I was nervous too._ She states, unwilling to allow that as reasoning. _I know. Next time._ Hope shakes her head and puts her phone down. She doesn’t respond to the text and decides to just let it settle for the night. When she wakes up in the morning, she’s immediately met with a text. _I need my car. When can you come get me?_ Kelley asks. Hope sighs and checks the time. 8:30. _Whenever you’re ready for me to come. I just need your address._

 

When Hope pulls up to the apartment building, she sends Kelley a text, letting her know that she’s here. She watches as Kelley makes her way to her car. “Hey.” She says, softly, as Kelley gets in. “Hi.” She replies, easily. She puts on her seatbelt while Hope pulls out of the complex. “You have work today?” She asks, curiously. Kelley scrunches her nose. “Unfortunately.” Hope gives her a sympathetic glance. Neither of them mention the rather awkward ending to their night. Luckily, the ride from Kelley’s apartment to Hope and Carli’s house isn’t long and after only a few minutes, Hope pulls into the driveway. She parks to the right of Kelley car and Hope sighs, before getting out. “Thanks for the ride.” Kelley says, as she walks around Hope’s SUV. The keeper nods, in response. “It’s the least I could do considering I forced you to take a cab last night.” Kelley smiles. “You were looking out for me. Plus, I probably shouldn’t have been driving anyway.” She states.

 

“You should come by the bar later. I work the night shift.” Hope purses her lips, contemplating her schedule, before nodding. “Okay. I’ll be there at some point.” She replies, looking down at Kelley, who’s leaning against the hood of her car. She sighs and looks at her phone, checking the time. “Ugh, I’ve gotta go. I’ll see you tonight.” She says, as she pushes herself off of the car. She walks to Hope, before leaning up and placing a lingering kiss to her cheek. She pulls away with a shy smile. “Drive safely.” Hope says, trying to hide the faint blush that’s covering her cheeks. “I will.” Kelley replies, easily, while getting into her car.

 

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is!
> 
> Let me know what you think. :)

 

 

Hope and Kelley spend the next few weeks getting to know more about one another. There’s no strings attached, just yet, and they still haven’t taken the next step. Hope’s been allowing Kelley to take the reins and set the pace. After sensing Kelley’s hesitance, she’s content with taking a step back and slowing things down a little bit. Just when the goalkeeper thinks things could actually turn out well with the bartender, everything changes. Hope decided to visit Kelley at the bar and grab a drink, since she’s working with Tom. She doesn’t expect what’s to come.

 

Hope sits at the bar, slowly nursing her drink, while Kelley makes her way to different customers, taking their order and making their drinks. Tom, the other bartender, does the same, the two of them making their way around each other easily, clearly used to working with each other. Luckily for the two workers, it’s starting to slow down and Kelley’s night will be over rather soon. She shoots Hope a smile from across the bar. Hope returns the gesture, offering a quick wink. She looks up to see what’s playing on the flat screen when she hears a small voice sound. “Mommy!” A little girl says, as she walks up to the bar followed by an older woman, greying hair falling to just above her shoulders. The girl looks at Hope, who gives her a smile, and walks right past her. She doesn’t notice Kelley’s face go white or her eyes widen at the sound of the little girl’s voice.

 

“Mommy?” The child says again, trying to see above the counter. Hope watches the girl, skeptically. The older woman picks the little girl up and looks at Kelley apologetically. “I’m so sorry. My sister..she’s in the hospital and I need to get down there.” Hope’s brows furrow as she tries to put the pieces together. Kelley nods at the woman, understandingly. She comes out from behind the bar, shooting Hope guilt-filled glances. “Mommy!” The child exclaims, excitedly, as Kelley takes her from the woman. Hope immediately feels the rug being ripped from underneath her. “Call me later and let me know how your sister’s doing, okay?” Kelley says, giving the woman’s forearm a squeeze. The woman nods, before walking quickly out of the restaurant.

 

Hope gapes, her eyes wide, in shock. She looks at Kelley, who’s giving her an apologetic look, in return. She shakes her head at the shorter woman as she realizes what this means. “Tom, I’ll be right back.” Kelley says, quickly, earning a nod from the other bartender. She walks over to Hope, ignoring the babbling that her daughter is currently doing in her ear. “Come outside with me for a second?” She asks in a hushed voice. “Who are you?” The little girl asks, looking at the blue-eyed stranger. Hope blinks for a few seconds, before standing and beginning to walk with them towards the door. “I’m Hope. Who are you?” She asks, giving the child a small smile. Regardless of the situation, it’s not the child’s fault.

 

“I’m Lily, like the flower.” The little girl responds from her place, securely, in Kelley’s arms. Kelley continues to shoot Hope worried glances over her daughter’s head. Hope thinks back to the lilies that Kelley had given her the other night when she came over for dinner and it all makes a little more sense. As they walk outside, Kelley starts speaking. “I’m so sorry, Hope. I know I should have told you but I didn’t know how and I just wasn’t sure how you were gonna take it. I really like you.” She says, quickly. “I didn’t want you to write me off because of this.” She finishes, bouncing Lily on her hip. “You have a child. A real child. You do realize I didn’t even want to commit and now there’s…” She trails off, motioning to said child, who looks to be trying to figure out what’s happening between the two of them. Her hazel eyes, matching her mother’s almost perfectly, glancing between the two adults in wonder.

 

Kelley nods, guiltily. “I know. I’m sorry.” She says. She glances back towards the door of the restaurant. “I need to get back. I-I don’t know what I’m gonna do with her.” She says, wiping her face with her free hand. Hope sighs, glancing at the small, blonde-headed girl in her mother’s arms. “I can watch her til the end of your shift.” Hope offers. Kelley gapes at her for a few seconds, before responding. “Are-Are you sure?” She asks, confusedly. Hope sighs and holds out her hands to the girl. “You wanna hang out with me for a little while?” Hope asks, in an kind tone, trying to get the toddler to come with her. Lily looks at the adult, skeptically, for a few seconds, before shaking her head and burying her face in her mother’s shoulder. Hope drops her hands to her sides and looks at Kelley nervously. “I’m not good with kids.” She mutters under her breath.

 

“Lil, I need to go back to work.” Kelley says, softly, in the child’s ear. “Can you do me a big favor and hang out with Hope until I’m all done? I’ll be right across the counter, okay? I’ll even give you some cherries.” She offers, hopefully. Lily peeks her head up, looking at Kelley. “Can I have extra cherries?” She asks, sweetly. Kelley rolls her eyes, but can’t suppress a small smile from making its way onto her face. “Okay.” She answers, giving Hope an appreciative look, as the goalkeeper takes Lily into her arms. The three of them walk back into the restaurant and Kelley goes straight back to the bar, while Hope stops to grab a kid’s menu and crayons from the hostess.

 

“Do you want to color?” Hope asks, as she carries the child back to the bar. Lily nods, looking at the woman. “You’re pretty.” She says, poking Hope’s cheek with her small pointer finger. Hope fails to suppress a smile and looks at the girl. “Thank you.” She answer’s, softly, as she sits down at her bar stool and places Lily on her lap. “So are you.” Lily smiles up at her. “Thank you.” She responds, politely. Hope opens up the small box of crayons and points to the uncolored picture of a cowboy hat. “You want to color that one?” She asks. Lily nods her head and reaches for the blue crayon. “Blue’s my favorite color.” Hope smiles at her. “Mine too.”  

 

“Here’s your cherries, baby. I’ll be all done with work soon, okay?” Lily nods, distractedly, as she concentrates wholly on staying inside the lines. Kelley smiles at her daughter, before looking at Hope. ‘Thank you.’ She mouths to her, giving her a guilt-filled, but appreciative, look. Hope gives her a tight smile, in response. “Will you help me?” Lily asks, interrupting the moment between the women. “Of course.” Hope replies, looking over the girl’s shoulder. “I can’t find ‘box’.” She says, pointing to the word search that she’s moved on to. Hope immediately finds it, but pretends that she’s having difficulty with it. “I found it.” Hope whispers, in faux-excitement.

 

Lily looks up at her with wide eyes. “You did? Where? Where?” Hope smiles and points to the general area that the word is in. “It’s somewhere over here.” She directs. Lily sticks her tongue out of the side of her mouth, trying to find the word. “I found it!” She says, a little bit too loudly for the setting. Hope laughs and glances around the bar, hoping that no one was bothered. “Good job. I knew you could do it.” The brunette says, kindly. Kelley watches the interaction and tries to ignore the flutter in her chest at the sight. ‘Not good with kids.’ Kelley thinks, sarcastically. She checks the time and sighs, in relief. “Tom, I’m off in 5. Do you mind if I leave a little early?” Tom waves her off, letting her know that he doesn’t care. She mutters a ‘thanks’, before clocking out.

 

“Okay, Lil. You ready to go?” Kelley asks, as she walks towards the pair. Lily looks at her and shakes her head. “No, mom. We need to find ‘cat’.” She says, seriously. She gives her mother a pointed look, before looking at Hope. “Did you find it yet?” She asks. Hope lets out an airy laugh and nods. “It’s somewhere over here.” She says, pointing to the page. Lily lets out an excited gasp when she finds it. “Okay, we can go now.” She says, looking at Kelley, who smiles. “Come here.” She says, as she lifts the child off of Hope’s lap. “Hopey, are you coming too? I have another game at my house that you could play with me.” Kelley smiles at her daughter’s innocence. Hope’s falters, a little bit, before shaking her head. “I can’t.” She says, gently. She glances at Kelley, before looking back at the child. “Maybe another time, okay?” Lily pouts for a few seconds, before nodding, in understanding. “Okay.”

 

Hope walks with the pair to their car and watches as Kelley places Lily in her car seat, which was most-definitely not there last night. Kelley closes the door and turns to face Hope. She looks into her eyes for a few seconds, before grabbing her right wrist and leading her to the back of the car, where the child can’t see them. Hope follows Kelley, skeptically. “What are you-“ Hope is cut off by Kelley’s lips being pressed against hers, softly. Kelley pushes her back into the trunk of the car, still holding onto her wrist. Hope freezes, clearly not expecting the kiss. She finds her footing soon after and kisses the shorter woman back, before pulling away. “What was that?” Hope asks, confusedly. “I just-I…thank you.” Kelley stutters. Hope looks at her for a few seconds. “This isn’t okay, Kelley. I watched her to do you a favor, not because I’m okay with it. You should have mentioned her to me. I should have been able to decide if I wanted to be involved in this or not.”

 

“You would have run before you even got to know me.” Kelley states. Hope looks down at the pavement, before glancing at Kelley. “Even so…I should have been given the choice.” She says, seriously. “Where’s her father? Jesus, are you still with her father?” She continues, getting herself worked up. Kelley places her hands on Hope’s, trying to calm her down. “He ran as soon as the pregnancy test came back positive.” Kelley says, softly. Hope looks at her and feels a sense of anger towards a man that she doesn’t even know. How could someone do that? “Hope, you have a choice. You don’t have to decide right now, but now you know everything. I have to go. I don’t want to leave her in there by herself.” She says, motioning to the car. “You do have a choice. Think about it.” She squeezes Hope’s hands, and gives her a nervous smile, before making her way back into the car. Hope watches, silently, as the car pulls away and knows she’s in way over her head.

 

 


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a whole lot of context in this chapter, that's for sure.
> 
> Enjoy!

 

 

“She has a kid? Like a living, talking, kid? A human child? Not a goat?” Pinoe asks, in horror. Hope leans forward on the couch and places her face in her hands. Pinoe came over after getting a frantic phone call from the goalkeeper. “Yes. A child. Fuck, I don’t know what to do.” Pinoe looks at her with wide eyes. “Do you like her? The kid, I mean.” Hope nods. “She’s adorable. But she’s Kelley’s. I’m not ready for that.” She says, shaking her head, quickly. Pinoe rolls her eyes. “You’re freaking out.” She states. Hope looks at her, exasperatedly. “Of course I am! How would you feel if Sera told you she has a kid?” She asks, seriously. Pinoe shrugs, nonchalantly, as if she’d thought about it before. “I’d get to know the kid. I love Sera. I’d be upset that she lied about it, but I see why Kelley did.”

 

“Who’s side are you on?” Hope asks, shooting her a light glare. Pinoe puts her hands up in surrender. “I’m just saying. If she had told you from the beginning, you wouldn’t have gone out with her in the first place.” She mentions, honestly. Hope sighs, but nods. “I know.” Pinoe looks at her, trying to figure out how to help her friend. She glances at her phone to check the time. “I think you’re over thinking things, a bit.” Hope looks at her with narrowed eyes. “Over thinking things? What am I over thinking? She has a kid. I’m not ready for arts and crafts day. I’m not ready for cartoon character birthday parties. I’m not ready for crying in the middle of the night.” Pinoe chuckles. “I think she’s over the crying stage, Solo, she’s not an infant.” Hope rolls her eyes. “Seriously, though. Just think about it. You’re the one who has to make the decision. Stop thinking about Lily for a second and think of Kelley. Do you think you can see a future there? I know it’s pretty quick, but that’s how it has to be. Think about it.” Pinoe says, as she stands. “I have to go. Sera’s cooking.” She says, walking up to the frustrated keeper. She squeezes her shoulder and makes her way out. “Call me if you need me.” She calls to her, before closing the front door behind her.

 

Hope groans and stands up. She walks to the kitchen and makes herself a pot of much-needed coffee. “Hey, I’m home!” Hope hears Carli’s voice and rolls her eyes. The last thing she needs is Carli telling her what to do in this situation. “Hey.” Hope replies, dryly. “Nice to see you too.” Carli says, skeptically. She looks at Hope for a few seconds. “What’s wrong?” She asks, knowingly, as she puts her gym bag on the ground and walks into the kitchen. Hope sighs and looks at her. “I’m not meant to be happy.” She says, simply, her eyes filling up against her will. Carli furrows her eye brows and places a hand on Hope’s arm. “What happened? Is it Kelley?” She asks, carefully. Hope nods and takes a deep breath, steadying herself. “She has a daughter.” Hope breathes out, before shaking her head. Carli raises her eye brows. “What? When did you find out?”

 

“Tonight. I wouldn’t have found out if her babysitter didn’t have to go to the hospital. Lily showed up at the bar and Kelley was forced into telling me.” Hope explains, quickly. Carli blinks a few times. “Wow.” Hope rolls her eyes. “Well don’t let that get you down too much. You’ll find someone else, Hope. You’re meant to be happy, don’t think otherwise just because of this.” The midfielder says, indifferently. Hope tilts her head. “How do you know I’m not gonna stay with her?” She asks, almost defensively. Carli scoffs out a laugh. “Hope, she has a kid. You can’t raise a child right now.” She chuckles out. Hope looks at her, silently, for a few seconds. “You don’t think I’d be good at it?” She asks, a sense of vulnerability making its way into her tone.

 

“Wait, you’re actually considering this? You’re thinking about staying with her?” Carli asks, clearly shocked by the revelation. Hope pours coffee in her mug and shrugs. “We aren’t even technically together. I just-I don’t know what to do.” She says, running her fingers through her hair, in frustration. Carli sighs and sits down on a stool. “Do you really think you’re ready for a kid?” Hope takes a long sip of her coffee. “No…I don’t know. I don’t think I’d be good with a kid. I’d fuck it up. I just know that I really like Kelley. I don’t want to stop seeing her.” Carli raises her eyebrows. “Well, there’s your answer.” She states, simply.

 

“What do you mean?” Hope’s clearly confused. Carli rolls her eyes at the goalkeeper. “I mean, you just said you don’t want to stop seeing Kelley, so don’t stop seeing her, you idiot. It’s gonna be her decision if she wants you in her daughter’s life or not. She’s not gonna allow just anyone to be involved with her kid. So keep seeing her and if she thinks you’d be good with the kid then she’ll let you know.” Carli explains, as if it’s obvious. Hope stops for a few seconds, her brain racing. “Maybe.” She says, softly. “Maybe you’re right.” She continues. Carli nods, knowingly. “Sleep on it, Solo. For the record, I’m team Kelley.” She states, raising her hand for emphasis.

 

Hope does sleep on it. She sleeps on it that night and every night after for the next week. When she finally gets the nerve to reach out to Kelley, she feels uncharacteristically nervous. ‘It’s just a text.’ She thinks to herself, as she looks at the blank text box. _Can we meet up?_ She sends. When there’s no response within the first few minutes so she places her phone down and heads for the shower after a long training session. By the time she’s back in her room, a response is waiting for her. _I’m free tonight._ Kelley had responded. Hope sighs, in relief. A small part of her thought that Kelley may have stopped waiting for her decision.

 

Hope asked (told) Carli to ‘find something to do tonight so that Kelley could come over and they’d have privacy to talk. Being at home is much easier than trying to hear each other over the noise of a restaurant or a bar. Carli goes to the bar with Pinoe and Sera, who agreed to go out after learning the circumstances. Hope sighs, as she looks in the mirror. She’s been trying and failing to control her nerves, which are quite honestly starting to frustrate the goalkeeper. She’d never had a problem with stuff like this, until she met Kelley. The fact that there’s now a four-year-old involved only serves to make her anxiety over the situation even worse. She jumps, her train of thought broken, when she hears a knock at the door. After one final look in the mirror, she heads downstairs.

 

“Hey.” She says, semi-awkwardly, as she sees Kelley. She motions for her to come inside and takes her jacket for her. “How have you been?” Kelley asks, curiously. She hadn’t heard from Hope for just over a week before she got that text. “I’ve been okay.” The goalkeeper answers, honestly. “You?” Kelley shrugs. “Same.” She states, simply. Hope leads them to the dining room, which is just off of the kitchen. They take a seat at the table, after Kelley refused any offer of a beverage that Hope presented. “I’m sorry you had to find out that way.” Kelley apologizes, starting the conversation off. Hope nods, slowly. “Me too.”

 

Kelley looks down at the table in front of her. “I should have told you, I just-I didn’t know how you were gonna take it. I just wanted you to give me a chance.” She explains, quickly. Hope nods. “I know. I just wish I wasn’t bombarded like I was.” She says, softly. She’s not angry about it, but she does wish she hadn’t had to find out about and meet Lily all within five minutes. “Me too. I appreciate you handling it so well in front of her. It could have gone much worse.” The bartender admits, giving the keeper a nervous smile. Hope shrugs, brushing it off. They fall into an awkward silence, neither of them knowing where to go from here. Kelley doesn’t know where Hope’s head is at, while Hope doesn’t know if Kelley would even want her to be in their lives.

 

“I’m not good with kids, Kell.” Hope admits, looking at the woman, seriously. Kelley rolls her eyes and looks into the blue eyes in front of her. “You were great with her.” She states, simply. Hope shakes her head. “I don’t-I don’t want to mess anything up. I like you, but I don’t think I’m good for her.” Kelley narrows her eyes, slightly. “Why not?” She asks, curiously. The goalkeeper wipes her face with her hands, trying to delay as much as possible. “I don’t know. Kids don’t like me.” She states. Kelley let’s out a stifled chuckle, earning a glare from the brunette. “That’s what you’re afraid of? That Lily won’t like you? She talked about you the whole way home. ‘Hopey helped me find ‘box’, ‘log’, and ‘cat’.” She mocks her daughter, jokingly. Hope rolls her eyes, but her chest swells knowing how excited Lily had been. The goalkeeper stays quiet, unknowing of what to say next. Kelley looks at her, seriously, noticing how nervous the other woman is.

 

“I wouldn’t ever bring someone around her unless I know for sure they deserve to be a part of her life.” Kelley states, looking at the keeper, who’s eyes snap to hers. Hope tries to read what Kelley means by that, but gets nothing. “Are you saying that you think I deserve that or that you don’t think I deserve that?” She asks, shakily. Kelley shrugs. “I’m not sure yet.” Hope looks away from the mother, but nods, in understanding. “Okay.” The freckled woman sighs, knowing Hope may be a little bit hurt by her response. “It’s not…I don’t-Ugh.” She takes a deep breath. “You have to understand. She’s four now. She gets attached to people and the last thing I want to do is bring someone into her life only for them to leave.” She explains. “I have to make sure we’re gonna work before I allow you to be a part of her life.”

 

Hope clenches her jaw. She understands what Kelley is saying, but that doesn’t mean she likes it. “So where do we go from here?” Kelley doesn’t skip a beat. “We continue to see each other and see where it takes us. If we work out and I feel comfortable allowing you into her life, then that’s what happens. If we don’t work, we don’t work.” Hope furrows her eyebrows. “You don’t seem like you care very much.” She mentions, looking the woman in the eye. Kelley looks away and takes another breath, before responding. “Of course I care; I just need to protect myself.” She tries explaining.

 

“You have all the control here, Kell, I’m just along for the fucking ride. You get to decide if we work out, you get to decide if I get to see Lily or not, you get to decide if we’re together or not, you get to make all the decisions while I just stay back and hope you choose me.” Hope surprises even herself with the small rant. Kelley’s eyes widen, slightly. “I have to make sure you’re truly in it. I have to be able to control that decision, I’m sorry. I can’t have you in her life if you’re just gonna up and decide we aren’t worth it. It takes work, Hope. A child isn’t all fun and games. I need to make sure you’re gonna be there for the grumpy days before I let you be there for the happy days.”

 

“You don’t think I know it takes work? Why do you think it took me so damn long to think about it? I thought of everything. I just don’t want to end up being strung along just to be hurt in the end.” Kelley stares intently into blue eyes that re growing more guarded with each passing second. She decides to take the conversation in a different direction, hoping to get to the bottom of the true issue here. “You’ve been hurt before.” The bartender states, watching as Hope looks down at the table. She can basically feel the tension rise in the room. “What happened?” Kelley follows up with a question after getting no response from the keeper.

 

“You don’t need to know that, Kelley. I just don’t want to be taken advantage of.” Hope replies, refusing to delve into her own past. Kelley, however, doesn’t accept that as an answer. “I don’t need to know, but I want to. I want to know why you’re so scared.” “I’m not scared.” Hope fires back without hesitation. Kelley rolls her eyes. “Please?” She asks, giving Hope a soft, pleading, look. “I’ve been hurt my whole fucking life. Which incident would you like to know about?” She asks, her voice ice cold. It doesn’t deter the determined bartender, who doesn’t miss a beat. “The one that made you think you’re not good enough.” Hope’s eyes snap up to meet hers and she clenches her jaw, her brows furrowed. She doesn’t respond for a few seconds, clearly trying to decide whether it’s worth getting into or not. She takes a deep breath and blinks rapidly, before finally responding.

 

“My ex cheated on me.” She says, simply. Kelley nods, motioning for the keeper to elaborate. Hope sighs, knowing she wasn’t getting out of this conversation. “We were together for over a year and a half and she slept with one of my teammates.” The bartender’s eyes widen. She clearly wasn’t expecting that. “Ali Krieger.” Hope states, shakily. Kelley’s eye brows raise. “That’s who she cheated on you with?” The keeper shakes her head. “That’s my ex. She cheated with-“ She cuts herself off and chuckles, dryly, at the situation. “She slept with Ashlyn Harris.” She finishes, looking at Kelley as if to say ‘are you happy?’.

 

Kelley doesn’t respond for a few seconds, looking at the brunette, in shock. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know it was so…messy.” She chooses her words carefully. Hope nods. “Makes for awkward goalkeeper training sessions. They’re still together.” She admits. Kelley shakes her head. “You loved her?” She asks, curiously. “I thought I was gonna marry her.” Hope responds, shaking her head at her own stupidity. Kelley nods, in understanding. She now sees why the intimidating woman was (or still is) afraid of committing. She sighs and knows she has to offer Hope something in return for opening up to her. “My parents kicked me out of the house when they found out I was pregnant.” The woman admits.

 

Hope perks up and looks at Kelley with wide eyes. “They-They what?” The bartender nods. “They didn’t understand how I could allow it to happen before marriage. They weren’t willing to support a pregnant 20-year-old so they kicked me out. They gave me a few thousand dollars to get me started, probably to ease their own guilt. So I moved here. I had already told my ex at that point and he told me he wanted nothing to do with me or the baby so I had no strings holding me back. I still talk to Jerry and Erin, but I haven’t heard from my parents since Lil was born.” She explains, sadly, giving Hope a forced smile.

 

“I’m sorry that happened.” Hope whispers. Kelley shrugs. “It’s okay. It made me stronger. No one close to me wanted much to do with Lily. I let my ex-girlfriend meet her right away and she left within six months. Lil was heartbroken. So please just understand that I need to protect her before anything else.” She says. Hope sighs, but nods. She understands why Kelley’s so protective, but she needs to plead her case. “I’m not them, Kelley. I’m not her father, I’m not your parents, and I’m certainly not your ex. I’ve put myself out there for you and it seems like I’m not getting much out of it.” She snaps, looking directly at Kelley, who clearly wasn’t expecting the outburst. She stays calm, however.

 

“How can we find a common ground? I want you to feel comfortable about this.” She asks, carefully, keeping her voice level. She doesn’t want this to escalate into a full-blown argument. Hope takes a deep breath, calming herself a little, before responding. “I don’t know. In a perfect world, you’d trust me and I’d be able to get to know her too.” She stops for a few seconds, thinking about something. Kelley interrupts her train of thought. “It’s not that I don’t trust you, babe. I just need to be sure. Who knows, maybe you’ll get sick of me and leave before you even get to see her again.” Kelley chuckles out. Hope blinks a few times, her stomach fluttering with the term. “Babe?” She asks. Kelley’s immediately confused, until she thinks back to what she had said. “Shit, I didn’t mean to say that. Sorry.” She doesn’t miss the slight look of disappointment that covers the goalkeeper’s face. She tilts her head.

 

“Is this about you not knowing where we stand?” She asks, softly. Hope shrugs and looks away. ‘Bingo.’ Kelley thinks. “Talk to me, Hope. I can’t read your mind.” She says after the woman doesn’t respond. “I just need to know if we’re an exclusive thing or not. Are we together? Are we seeing other people? I don’t care either way, I just need to know.” Hope fires off, looking at Kelley, pleading for an answer. Kelley shrugs. “I mean, I wouldn’t consider us to be exclusive, just yet, but I don’t want to see other people.” Hope shakes her head. “This is what I mean. You keep saying that I’m the one who’s scared to commit, when I’m, clearly, the only one who’s ready for that.” She responds, easily. Kelley furrows her brows. “I’m not scared to commit. I just don’t want to force anything.” Hope rolls her eyes. “You don’t want to force what? Us being together? Do you even want to be with me or are you just hoping I’ll stick around? You refused to even kiss me until you saw me with Lily. How am I supposed to feel?”

 

Kelley puts her face in her hands, her elbows resting on the wooden dining table. “I shouldn’t have kissed you that night.” She mumbles, shaking her head. Hope lifts her hands up, before dropping them back on the table. “So you don’t want to kiss me, got it.” Hope states, defensively. Kelley makes a sound of frustration. “No. I didn’t want it to happen until I was sure you weren’t gonna run. I wanted you to know about her before I put myself out there completely. I feel like I made the situation more confusing by kissing you, but seeing you with her…it-you were great.” She stutters. Hope sighs. “It doesn’t seem like we’re getting anywhere.” She mentions.

 

Kelley takes a few seconds to gather her thoughts. She stands up, not missing the confused expression on Hope’s face. “Where are you going?” She asks, nervously. Kelley ignores her question and walks up to the goalkeeper. Hope looks up at her with questioning eyes, but turns her body to face the smaller woman. Kelley reaches out and places a gentle palm on Hope’s cheek, before moving her hand under the brunette’s chin, tilting her head up. She leans down and places a kiss to the woman’s forehead, allowing her lips to linger for a few seconds. “I want you to be in our lives. I want to be with you. We just need to take it slow.” She says, softly, looking into blue eyes. Hope nods against Kelley’s hand, in understanding.

 

Kelley’s eyes fall to Hope’s lips. She leans in before she can stop herself. Her hand moves back to Hope’s cheek, as their lips meet. Hope kisses her back, immediately, and moves her a hand to the back of the bartender’s neck. Kelley is the one who moves to deepen the kiss, which causes Hope to pull away. She takes a few seconds to allow her heart rate to slow. “What was that?” She asks, looking up at her. “Give me a month.” Hope’s face immediately shows her confusion. “What do you mean?” Kelley sighs, before elaborating. “Give me a month with you. Then we’ll see where we are. If everything is going well, we’ll move forward and potentially bring Lily into it.” Hope hesitates. “A month?” She asks. Kelley nods. “A month.”

 

“Are we together during this month or…” Hope trails off, knowing Kelley got the just of it. Kelley bends down so she can be eye-level with the brunette. “I’d like to be.” She admits. Hope tries to suppress a smile, but fails. It’s a strange feeling for Hope, actually wanting to be committed to someone. Before, she wasn’t sure about it, she was afraid she was gonna get hurt, but with Kelley, she’s willing to take the risk. Kelley smirks and kisses the woman’s cheek. “Are you okay with that?” She asks, as she pulls away. Hope nods. “I’m okay with that.” She admits. Kelley smiles and stands up, pulling Hope up with her. She pulls her into a hug that Hope immediately reciprocates. “I’m sorry this was all so messy and confusing.” Kelley says, softly. The goalkeeper shrugs. “It’s nothing. We figured it out.” Kelley smiles. “We did.”

 

The pair spend another hour or so together before Kelley has to go home and put Lily to bed. Kelley can honestly say that she’s glad everything is out in the open, for the most part. She no longer has to worry about how Hope will react when she finds out. She doesn’t have to feel guilty about lying to her about who she’s talking to or where she’s going. It’s easier…much easier now that they’ve figured it out. The next month will be hard, not being able to share Hope with Lily and vice versa, but she knows it’s for the child’s benefit, in the end. The last thing she wants is for Hope to realize how hard this is gonna be and leave, ultimately breaking the child’s heart, once again.

 

 


	7. Chapter 7

 

 

The next couple of weeks are spent getting to know more about one another. They go on multiple dates and talk about everything. Kelley tells Hope about the new things Lily says or what she did the night before. Hope listens, intently, trying to learn more about the blonde-headed girl. One night, Hope decides to pay Kelley a visit at the bar, figuring a Monday wouldn’t be too busy for her. As she walks in and sees the place looking deserted, she knows she was right. She saunters up to the bar and takes a seat in the back corner.

 

When she finally sees Kelley, she’s instantly concerned. The woman looks exhausted, her lips resting in a frown, and her eyes lacking the excitement they normally have. When she sees Hope, she forces a smile. “Hey. What are you doing here?” Hope frowns, slightly, at the lack of energy coming from the bartender. “I thought I’d come have a drink. You okay?” She asks, slowly, trying to read Kelley’s face. “I’m fine, it’s just…Lily’s been sick the past couple days and she’s had trouble sleeping.” Kelley breathes out, tiredly.

 

“Why didn’t you say anything?” Hope asks. Kelley hadn’t mentioned Lily’s sickness to her. “I’ve just been trying to focus on her. I had to call out of work yesterday because she wouldn’t let me leave. Luckily, she was napping when I left today.” She explains. She wasn’t trying to distance herself from Hope, but sometimes Lily just needs her full attention. Hope nods, in understanding. “Are you okay?” Kelley shrugs, sighing a little bit, as she pours Hope a drink. “I’m just tired.”

 

“Can I do anything?” Hope knows Kelley’s going to say ‘no’, but she figures it won’t hurt to ask. Kelley locks eyes with her, a sense of vulnerability showing itself through. “Will you just stay here with me until my shift’s over?” Hope knits her eyebrows together, but nods. “Everything okay?” She asks, suspiciously glancing around the building. Kelley nods. “I’m just having a really bad day and it’s so slow. You being here helps.” She answers, pulling a small smile from the goalkeeper.

 

Kelley smiles at her, appreciatively. “I’m only here until 10. The manager is letting me out early because it’s been so dead.” Hope glances at her phone, noting it’s already 9:30. She watches as Kelley makes her way around the bar area, cleaning and going through the ‘closing’ routine. “I’ve been talking to Lily about you.” The bartender mentions, as she cleans the counter in front of Hope. “You have?” She asks, slightly surprised. Kelley’s made it seem like she wants to keep Hope at a distance from the child. “She obviously remembers you from the night you met, but I want to make sure she knows you’re not just some stranger.”

 

Hope takes a sip of her drink. She’s happy that Lily will know who she is when she finally does get to see her again. Kelley walks away and busies herself with taking inventory. By the time ten o’clock hits, Kelley’s all but running out the door. She quickly punches out and Hope barely has time to put on her jacket, before following Kelley out of the building. “Thanks for staying with me.” Kelley says, as Hope walks with her to her car. The goalkeeper shrugs it off. “I’m glad I did.”

 

When they finally make it to Kelley’s car, the bartender smiles up at Hope, sadly. “I really have to get home to her.” She says, regretfully. She’s missed Hope the past few days. The two haven’t had much time together because of Kelley’s busy schedule. Between work and Lily, plus Lily’s sickness, the woman hasn’t had any time to spare for her girlfriend. “I know.” Hope replies, easily. “Get home safely. You know to call if you need anything.” She states. Kelley nods. “I’ll text you when I’m home.” She says, softly, before leaning up to peck Hope on the lips.

 

* * *

 

 

The week after Hope visited Kelley at the bar, she has Kelley over to her place, once again, while Carli is out of town. They decide they’re gonna order take out and watch a movie or two, before Kelley heads home and spends the rest of the night with her favorite girl. Everything is going really well when Kelley arrives. They eat their late lunch on the couch and watch a random crime show that Kelley had found on the TV.

 

“I’m gonna go change.” Hope whispers, after they both finish their food. Kelley nods and watches as the woman walks upstairs. She hesitates for a few seconds, before she finds herself following the brunette. When she gets to Hope’s open bedroom door, she peeks in and makes eye contact with her girlfriend. Hope feels her face get hot, as she realizes she’s clad in only Nike Pros. Kelley walks right up to Hope, while the goalkeeper shoots her questioning glances. Kelley reaches up and pulls Hope down by the back of her neck, before kissing her, hungrily. Hope moans into the rough kiss and allows Kelley to take the lead. The bartender pushes her backwards until Hope falls onto the bed. She’s immediately straddled by the smaller woman and her hands are pinned above her head.

 

Hope looks up into aroused hazel eyes and tries to catch her breath. “What are we doing?” She whispers. Kelley smirks, before leaning down and kissing her deeply. She moves her lips to Hope’s neck, immediately finding her pulse point, pulling a loud moan from the keeper’s throat. Hope begins to push against Kelley’s hands, which still have her firmly pinned to the bed. “Let me go.” The keeper requests. Kelley ignores her, continuing her path to the base of Hope’s neck. “Kell, let me go.” She says, a little more firmly. Kelley looks up at her and takes her hands away. Hope’s hands fly to Kelley’s neck and she pulls her into a heated kiss, immediately regaining the control.

 

Hours pass and Hope jolts awake to an empty bed. She looks around the room to find Kelley’s clothes, which were previously scattered around the floor, missing. It’s dark outside now, probably around 10 o’clock, as the moon shines through her bedroom window. “Kell?” She calls, while sitting up in bed. She furrows her brows and stands up, throwing on a t-shirt, before heading downstairs. “Kelley?” She calls again. With no response, she moves to the front door, opening it, slightly, to find that Kelley’s car is gone. She instantly feels dirty. ‘Was she playing me?’ She thinks. ‘Is this all she wanted?’ She can’t help that this is the first place her mind goes to. Hope slams the front door closed and goes to her phone to find that she hasn’t missed any texts from Kelley. She shakes her head and tosses her phone on the couch, making the decision to take a shower and go to sleep for the night.

 

Hope tosses and turns in her bed all night, her mind racing with thought. ‘Why would Kelley just leave without saying anything?’ She groans and turns to check the time. 7:00 shines, brightly, back at her. She decides to get up for the day, considering she can’t sleep anyway. It isn’t until she’s making herself some toast that she hears a knock at the door, followed by the door opening. “Hope?” Kelley calls. The goalkeeper turns and leans her back against the counter.

 

“I’m sorry, I forgot my phone. I went to text you and I couldn’t. Then I couldn’t come and get it because Lily was sleeping. I’m so sorry. I didn’t want to wake you, but I had to get home.” She explains, as she walks into the kitchen and approaches Hope. The goalkeeper feels relieved at the explanation and nods her head. “It’s okay.” She responds, simply. Kelley nods and leans up to brush her lips against Hope’s. “Last night was perfect.” She whispers against the keeper’s lips. Hope smiles, before pulling the shorter woman into a deep kiss. Kelley pulls away only a few seconds later. “I have to go. I just came to grab my phone. Lily’s waiting in the car.” Hope perks up at the mention of the child. Kelley notices, but doesn’t mention it. She leans up to give her one more lingering kiss on the lips, before grabbing her phone from the living room and heading out. Hope makes her way to the window and watches as Kelley’s small white car pulls away.

 

* * *

 

 

“Is Carli gonna be at your place tonight?” Kelley asks from the other line. It’s been a couple of days since they’ve last seen each other. Kelley’s been so busy with work and Lily that she’s had little to no free time since she picked up her phone from Hope’s house. “Yeah, she gets back at around 4. Why?” Kelley stays silent for a few seconds, before changing her mind. “Never mind. I was gonna see if I could come over.  Maybe you’d want to come over my apartment instead?” She asks. Hope hesitates, but smiles at the offer. She’s still never seen the inside of Kelley’s apartment. “I mean, yeah…sure.” She responds. “Where’s Lily gonna be?” She asks, confusedly. Usually the baby sitter watches Lily at Kelley’s apartment.

 

“Where do you think she’s gonna be?” Kelley asks, amusedly. It’s clear that the importance of her offer flew right over the goalkeeper’s head. “I don’t know. Is Donna taking her somewhere?” Hope asks. Kelley rolls her eyes. “She’s gonna be here, you big idiot.” The goalkeeper can’t even be upset at being called an ‘idiot’. She tries suppressing the grin that’s made its way onto her face. “Oh…Oh. Okay. Yeah.” She stutters. The bartender hears the smile in Hope’s voice and can’t help but wonder why she hadn’t made the offer sooner. “Okay. Well we have dinner at what time, Lil?” She hears Kelley ask. She’s confused for a few seconds, but soon she hears a small voice yell “6 o’clock, Hopey!”. Hope smiles at the nickname that only Lily could get away with calling her. “You told her I’m coming?”

 

“I told you, I’ve been telling her more about you lately. She knows who you are.” Hope lets out an airy laugh. “You’re sure you’re okay with this?” The goalkeeper asks. Kelley picks up her daughter. “I don’t know. Lily are you okay with Hopey coming over tonight?” She asks. “Ya!!” She shouts, enthusiastically. Hope brings the phone away from her ear, in an attempt to save her ear drums. “Okay, okay. I’ll be there.”

 

* * *

 

 

As Hope gets closer to Kelley’s apartment complex, she feels herself becoming increasingly nervous. ‘It’s just a four-year-old.’ She keeps thinking to herself, trying to calm her anxiety. _I’m here._ She texts Kelley after pulling into a parking spot. She gets out and grabs the bag of take out that she brought for dinner, along with a couple of children’s word searches she thought Lily might like. “You look pretty.” Kelley mentions, as she opens the door for her girlfriend. Hope smiles, mumbling a ‘thanks’, as she walks past her.

 

“Lily, look who’s here!” Kelley calls out, as they enter the apartment. Hope hears light footsteps quickly making their way towards them. “Hi, Hope.” She says, before running into the living room. Kelley rolls her eyes at the girl, smiling at Hope. “She a little bit hyped up, at the moment.” She chuckles. Hope smiles and pulls Kelley into a hug. “Thanks for letting me come over.” She whispers, softly. Kelley pulls away, slightly, and places a kiss on Hope’s lips. “Thanks for coming.”

 

The brunette walks into the kitchen and looks around the small apartment. It’s a two-bedroom, with one bathroom for the mother and daughter to share. It’s perfect for Kelley and Lily. Not too small and not too big. She walks around, while Kelley takes the food out of the take-out bag. The living room has two couches enclosing the space and a flat screen sits on the wall. A dark wood coffee table is placed in front of one of the couches, where Lily is currently watching a cartoon.

 

Kelley eventually gets Lily to calm down enough to sit and eat her meal. “How was school today, Lil?” Kelley asks the preschooler. Lily shrugs and dips a French fry into her ketchup. “We made butterflies.” She answers. Hope looks at Kelley questioningly. “Why don’t you tell Hope about it.” The mother offers. Lily perks up and gives Hope a smile. “We made paper butterflies and we painted them. Mine is yellow and green and black and white and blue, our favorite color.” She rambles, excitedly. Hope raises her eye brows, slightly surprised that the girl remembers her favorite color. “It sounds great. Do you get to bring it home?” Hope asks.

 

Lily nods, enthusiastically. “We need to wait for them to dry. Maybe if we bring them home tomorrow you can come over and see it!” The child states, looking between Kelley and Hope. The older woman looks at her girlfriend, asking her silently for permission. “We’ll see, Lil.” Kelley answers, giving Hope a reassuring smile. The three of them finish their meal, listening to Lily tell Hope all about pre-school and all of her friends. Alex is her best friend, while Sarah, Maverick, and Michelle are her ‘regular’ friends. “They’re not my best friends, they’re just my regular friends. Alex is my only best friend.” She had explained.

 

“Hopey, come see my room!” Lily says after dinner. She grabs Hope’s hand with both of hers and tugs her in the direction of her room. Kelley laughs as the goalkeeper sends her a look that says ‘help me’. Kelley takes care of the dishes, while Hope follows Lily. “It’s messy. Mommy hasn’t cleaned it in a long time.” The girl says, as they enter the room. The walls are a deep blue, which Hope assumes was Lily’s choice. She catches sight of the beige color from what she can see of the carpet. Toys are scattered all over the floor, leaving barely enough room to walk. “You know, Lil, you could help your mom and clean your room yourself. That way she doesn’t have to do it.” Hope explains. Lily looks at her, clearly confused.

 

“But I’m too little to clean.” She says, shrugging her shoulders. Hope crouches down to be at eye-level with the girl. “How about I help you? Let’s clean up all your toys, then maybe we can play a game.” She offers, softly. Lily smiles, clearly intrigued by the idea of playing a game. “Can I choose the game?” Hope almost laughs at the negotiation tactic. “Okay.” She concedes. Hope and Lily make their way around the room, placing the toys in their designated spots. Hope places the items where Lily tells her they belong and with both of them picking up the mess, it doesn’t take very long to finish.

 

“See? That wasn’t very hard, was it?” Hope asks, hoping to teach the girl that she can clean up after herself, regardless of how ‘little’ she is. Lily shrugs. “It’s easier when Mommy does it.” Hope rolls her eyes, but smiles at the child. “Okay, what game do you want to play?” Lily’s eyes light up and she makes her way over to where her games are located. “How about this one?” She asks, pointing to a board game. Hope nods her head. “Whatever you want.” The two set up the game on the carpeted floor, which is now clear of toys.

 

“Hopey, are you mommy’s new girlfriend?” Lily blurts out, as Hope moves her piece three spaces. Hope looks at her for a few seconds. “You’ll have to ask your mom about that, Lil.” She replies, refusing to answer the question if Kelley hadn’t talked to the girl about it yet. “I hope you’re mommy’s new girlfriend. I like you way better than the last lady. She was mean.” The blonde mentions. Hope tilts her head. “She was mean?” Lily nods. “She was mean to mommy. Then she left.” Hope sighs, thinking about her next words carefully. “I’d never be mean to your mom.” She reassures. Lily smiles and nods, knowingly. “I know!”

 

Kelley peeks her head in the small room and a smile instantly makes its way on her face. “I can see your carpet.” She mentions, smiling at her daughter. Lily perks up at the pride in Kelley’s voice. “Hopey helped me.” She stands up and grabs her mom’s hand, pulling her to join them on the carpet. “Who’s winning?” She asks, curiously, looking at the mostly finished game. “Me!” Lily says, happily. Kelley looks at Hope, who feigns disappointment. “I’m not good at board games.” She mutters. Kelley rolls her eyes at the brunette.

 

The three of them spend their first night together playing games and helping Lily with the word searches that Hope brought for her. They eventually settled down and put on a movie in the living room. Within the first half of the film, Lily had fallen asleep on the couch. “Thanks, for cleaning her room. You didn’t have to do that.” Kelley says, keeping her voice down. Hope shrugs. “It only took us a few minutes.” The bartender rolls her eyes, but doesn’t respond, refocusing her attention on Lily. “I’m gonna bring her to bed. Wait here.” Hope nods and watches as Kelley picks up her daughter and carries her down the short hallway.

 

Once Kelley returns, the pair settle in the kitchen. “Lily asked me if I’m your ‘new girlfriend’.” The goalkeeper admits. Kelley raises her eyebrows, in surprise. “Did she?” Hope nods. “Then she told me that the ‘last lady was mean’ to you.” She uses her hands to make quotation marks. Kelley sighs, knowing that Lily saw way too much of the downfall of her last failed relationship. “Kayla wasn’t the most considerate. She didn’t care if Lil was around when she would yell. That’s the main reason we broke up.” Hope nods, in understanding.

 

“I’m sorry she asked about that. What did you tell her?” Kelley asks, curiously. “I told her to talk to you about it.” Hazel eyes meet blue and Hope knows she handled that situation in the right way. “I’ll talk to her. I’ll tell her.” The goalkeeper shrugs. “It’s up to you, Kell. She’s your daughter. If you think she should know then tell her. I’m just glad I finally get to see her.” Kelley smiles. “I want to tell her. She loves you, she’ll be ecstatic.”

 

“What are you doing this weekend?” Hope asks, after a few seconds of silence. Kelley thinks it over in her head, trying to remember her work schedule. “I work on Saturday until 3, then I’m off for the night and I’m off on Sunday.” She states, tilting her head at Hope, questioningly. “Megan and her girlfriend are coming over to hang out with Carli and me. I was gonna see if you and Lily wanted to come?” She asks, gauging Kelley’s reaction nervously. “You want me to meet Carli, finally? I was beginning to think she’s your imaginary friend.” The bartender jokes, earning a light glare from Hope. “I was trying to save you from being interrogated. If you bring Lil, she might let you off the hook.” She explains with a wink. “We’ll be there.”

 

 


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I'm gonna stick with updating this on Thursdays and Mondays. :)

 

 

“Carli, do your fucking dishes!” Hope yells, from the bottom of the stairs. “I’ll do them later!” She hears the midfielder call back to her. She rolls her eyes. “Fucking asshole.” She mutters under her breath, before beginning to do the dishes herself. “I said I’ll do them later.” Carli says, as she walks in the kitchen. “You would have forgotten. Plus, I want everything to be done before they get here.” Carli rolls her eyes and grabs a bottled water from the fridge. If Hope insists upon doing her dishes, she’s not gonna stop her. “Pinoe and Sera are on their way.” She mentions. “Great.” Hope responds, sarcastically.

 

When Pinoe and Sera arrive, they all settle in the living room, making conversation until Kelley gets there. When Hope finally receives a text from Kelley, letting her know they just pulled in, she quickly makes her way outside. “Hey.” She says, smiling at the pair. Kelley gets Lily out of the car, before moving to grab some bags that she’d brought with her. “Hi, Hopey! Mommy told me you’re her new girlfriend.” She says, excitedly, running towards the taller woman. Hope crouches down and accepts the unexpected hug, picking the little girl up. “You excited to meet my friends?” She asks. Lily nods, quickly.

 

They make their way inside and Hope carries Lily into the living room, Kelley following close behind her. “Hey, kid!” Pinoe says, happily, standing up. Hope places Lily back on the ground and watches as Pinoe and Sera introduce themselves. Sera moves on to Kelley, who she hasn’t formally met yet. “This is Carli. She lives here with me.” Hope says, softly, motioning to the midfielder, who hasn’t moved from her seat. Carli smiles, awkwardly. “Hi, Lily. Nice to meet you.” Lily waves back, shyly, but stays glued to Hope’s side. “Nice to finally meet you.” Kelley says, confidently walking up to Carli and putting her hand out. Carli shakes her hand, with a firm grip that almost makes Kelley cringe. She gives the bartender a pointed look, before releasing her hand.

 

Hope moves to sit on the other couch, motioning for Kelley to do the same, while Lily follows and jumps right onto her mother’s lap. “Can I show her my butterfly now?” Lily whispers, loudly enough for everyone in the room to hear. Hope smiles at her, while Kelley nods and opens up the backpack that she’d brought along. She hands a very colorful bug to Lily, who instantly jumps to her feet and stands in front of Hope, holding it out, proudly. “Wow, Lil.” Hope says, taking the art from the child. “This is great! They let you bring it home yesterday?” Lily nods, excitedly. “I love it…Maybe your mom will hang it up at your house.” She offers, giving Kelley a questioning glance. Kelley smirks back at her, knowingly. “No, I want you to hang it up here. That way you can think of me and mommy when you’re not with us.” She smiles up at the goalkeeper, who’s face brightens at the gift. She gives the child a proud smile. “Thank you, Lil. I love it. You wanna come help me hang it on the fridge?” She asks, earning an excited nod from the child.

 

Hope’s friends watched the interaction, closely. Pinoe and Carli share a confused look at the bond that’s already formed between their friend and the four-year-old. They watch as Hope and Lily make their way out of the living room. Kelley watches them leave, in slight adoration. “What the fuck was that?” Pinoe asks, incredulously. Carli shakes her head, slowly, her gaze still focused on the doorway that the two left through. Kelley looks between the pair, confusedly, while Sera’s focus is on her IPhone. “What?” Kelley asks, finally. Carli snaps her gaze to the freckled woman. “What did you do to her?” She asks Kelley, who furrows her eye brows at the question. “She’s…she doesn’t even like kids.” Carli says, in a hushed tone.

 

“Well she likes Lily.” Kelley retorts, shrugging. Pinoe nods at her. “Clearly. Calm down, Lloyd. Don’t be jealous that Hope found a new mini best friend.” She says, jokingly. The midfielder rolls her eyes, ignoring the blonde. “Anyone need a drink?” Hope calls from the kitchen. She returns a few minutes later with the 4 water bottles and two glasses of chocolate milk. “You seriously drink milk?” Carli asks. Kelley nods, confidently. “Chocolate milk.” She corrects. Lily bounces in, plopping down on Hope’s lap with her own cup of chocolate milk. “You live here with Hopey?” She asks Carli, who almost looks afraid of the child. Carli nods, in response. “Do you like butterflies?” Everyone lets out a chuckle at the innocence of the question, while Carli only looks confused. She nods, slowly, in response.

 

Lily busies herself with a game on Kelley’s phone, while Kelley decides to try and make conversation. The women were pretty into a college baseball game and other than a few disapproving grunts coming from Carli when a player on her team strikes out, the room is quiet. “So where are you guys from?” She asks, not speaking to anyone in particular. Megan looks at her first. “I’m from Cali. You?” Kelley sighs. “Georgia.” Megan smiles. “You got yourself a Georgia peach, Solo.” She says, jokingly. “What’s a Georgia peach?” Lily blurts. Kelley lets out a laugh, knowing her daughter wouldn’t know because she’s never actually been to Georgia.

 

“I’ll show you, some day.” Kelley whispers to her daughter. Carli watches the interaction, closely. She watches how Hope looks at Kelley and Lily and something clicks for her. She’d always known Hope needed something. She needed something…someone to show her that there’s more to life than girls, soccer, and partying. Kelley seems to be doing that and while she’s still skeptical, while she still wants to protect her best friend, she sees that this is what the goalkeeper may need right now. “I’m from Jersey.” Carli finally states, answering Kelley’s original question.

 

Kelley crinkles her nose a little bit. “I heard it stinks there.” The glare she got from the midfielder all but burnt a hole through her forehead. “You’ve never been there.” Carli bites back, in response. Hope rolls her eyes at her friend. “It smells.” She states, in agreement with Kelley. Carli shakes her head at Hope. Lily looks around at the women around her, seeming to have an internal battle with herself. She climbs down from Hope’s lap and walks over to Carli. “Will you please help me?” She asks, looking up at the midfielder.

 

Carli’s eyes widen, as she glances from Lily to Hope. “Uh…Sure.” She responds. Hope stifles a laugh at her friend’s lack of grace. Carli listens as the four-year-old explains the game to her. Kelley smiles at Hope, who returns the gesture. They all watch, as Carli tries to beat the level of the game that Lily’s having trouble with. Minutes pass and they continue to hear the grunts of frustration coming from Carli, while Lily watches over her shoulder, occasionally reassuring her. “Almost!” Lily says, exasperatedly, as the midfielder fails the level for a fifth time.

 

“I can’t do it, kid. I’m sorry.” She says, handing the phone back to the blonde. Lily pouts, a little bit, but nods. “Thanks for trying.” She says, sweetly. She hesitates in front of Carli for a couple of seconds, before opening her arms up for a hug. Hope stifles her laughter at the look of fear that crosses Carli’s face, before she hugs the small girl. She shoots a glare at the laughing goalkeeper over Lily’s shoulder before pulling back. Lily bounds over to Hope and holds out the phone. “Hopey, your friend isn’t very good at this game. You try?”

 

Carli looks almost betrayed by the toddler, but shrugs it off and returns to watching the game. Megan’s focus stays on Hope and Lily, watching the duo interact. It’s clear to her that despite Hope’s worries, she’s getting along with the child flawlessly. Hope takes the phone and figures it out pretty quickly. Lily sits on the goalkeeper’s lap and watches her every move. “Jump! Jump!” She exclaims, at one point. “You did it!” She says, when Hope finally beats the level after only three failed attempts. Hope sends Carli a smug grin, before accepting the hug she gets from Lily. “Mommy, she did it!” She says, as she crawls across the couch to Kelley’s lap.

 

“I know. Did you say thank you?” Lily blinks a few times, before shaking her head. “Thank you, Hopey.” She says, smiling sweetly at the brunette. “You’re welcome, Lil.” Lily goes back to playing her game for a few minutes, before putting the phone down. She takes a deep breath, feeling herself becoming drowsy. She yawns and looks up at her mom. “I’m tired.” She says, quietly. “You can take a nap. We’ll be quiet.” Lily nods, before slowly sliding off of Kelley’s lap and going back over to Hope. She reaches her arms up to the brunette, who picks her up without second thought. Lily settles sideways on Hope’s lap, resting her head on the keeper’s shoulder.

 

Hope, proudly, looks at Kelley over Lily’s head. Kelley smiles back at her, adoringly. Lily has always been a rather outgoing child. She gets attached to people almost too-quickly. It’s the main reason that Kelley’s always so cautious when bringing new people around her. Seeing how easily Hope has seemed to catch on to Lily’s quirks and tendencies gives the bartender all the confidence in the world that the keeper isn’t going to run. As Lily falls asleep in Hope’s arms, Kelley feels herself falling for the goalkeeper just a little bit more.

 

As the night winds down, Lily sits in the living room and watches a movie, while the adults move to the kitchen. “Somehow I feel like the fifth wheel.” Carli states, as she sits down at the dining room table. Hope scoffs, as she pours two glasses of wine for her and Kelley. “You say that as if I don’t always have to third wheel it when Brian’s in town.” Carli rolls her eyes, in response. Pinoe and Sera sit down across from Kelley, while Carli sits next to Pinoe at the circular table. As Hope sits, she doesn’t miss the semi-awkward tension coming from her best friend. “So, you’re a bartender, huh?” Carli asks, curiously.

 

Hope places a hand on Kelley’s thigh. “Yes. For now, at least. It pays the bills well enough.” She responds, easily. While she doesn’t want to be behind a bar counter for the rest of her life, it’s a job and she’s not ashamed of it. “I was a bartender for a few years, back in my college days.” Sera says, smiling at her. Sera remembers what it was like when she first met Hope and Carli. While the women were nothing but nice to her, it was also intimidating to meet people that are so close to her girlfriend. She wants to make Kelley feel as comfortable as she can.

 

“That’s cool. I’ve been at it for almost 3 years now.” Kelley explains, smiling appreciatively at her. “Mom?” They hear a tired voice call from the other room. “Excuse me.” Kelley mumbles, as she makes her way to the living room. “Where’s Lily’s dad?” Pinoe whispers, curiously. No one had mentioned the man yet and she’s genuinely curious if he’s still in Lily’s life or not. Hope sighs and shakes her head. “He left before she was born.” She explains. Just as she opens her mouth to continue, Kelley walks back in the room. “Sorry, she just wanted me to change the channel.” She says, a smile covering her face at the thought of her daughter. “Does she need anything?” Kelley shakes her head at Hope’s question. “She’s fine.” She responds, pecking Hope’s cheek as she sits back down.

 

“Like she said, Kyle left us after I told him I was pregnant.” Kelley says, looking at Pinoe, who immediately looks horrified. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know you heard me. I was just-I..I” Kelley cuts her off, saving her from the embarrassment. “It’s fine, it’s totally fine. I’d be curious too if I were you. He only contacted me after she was born to make sure she was okay. Other than that, we haven’t spoken.” She explains, grabbing Hope’s hand and interlacing their fingers. “So you’re really interested in this moron?” Carli butts in, motioning to the goalkeeper, who gives her a deadly glare. Kelley lets out a stifled laugh. “Well she’s hot and good with Lily, so I suppose I’ll keep her around for a while.” Hope scoffs and jokingly tries pulling her hand away, with no success as Kelley clutches onto it.

 

“I’m kidding. Calm down.” She laughs out, smiling at her girlfriend. “Be careful. She talks about the kid more than she talks about you. Lily’s gonna take her from you.” Pinoe speaks up, dodging the keeper’s glare, by looking at whatever Sera’s doing on her phone. “That’s not even true.” Hope retorts, shaking her head at Kelley, who’s smiling back at her. Pinoe sighs and stands up, while Sera follows her lead. “Well, kids, we’ve gotta go. We’re going to see the ‘in laws’ tomorrow and have to start driving early.” She explains.

 

They say their goodbyes and Carli excuses herself to her room to ‘skype with Brian’. Hope and Kelley walk to the living room to check on Lily, who’s fast asleep. “You’re welcome to stay here. There’s a guest room if you’d prefer to stay in there with Lil.” Hope offers, as she watches Kelley packing up their things. She contemplates it while she finishes up, but eventually nods her head. “It’d probably be for the best. I had a few glasses of wine and I don’t feel like dealing with an Uber right now.”

 

The goalkeeper watches as Kelley carefully picks her daughter up, carrying her upstairs. She follows behind with the bags, trying to help as much as she can. Lily slowly wakes up, as they make their way into the room. “Where are we?” The little girl mumbles into her mother’s shoulder. Kelley places her on the bed. “We’re gonna stay at Hope’s for the night okay?” This catches her attention, but not in the way that the women were hoping for. Her eyes fill with tears and she shakes her head, quickly. “No. I wanna go home. I wanna go home.” She repeats. Hope watches from the doorway and feels a little bit guilty that Lily had to be woken up like this.

 

“It’s just for tonight, love bug. Maybe Hopey will make you pancakes in the morning.” She winks over her shoulder at her girlfriend, who nods her head. “I’ll make whatever kind you want.” She states, trying to calm the sniffling girl. Lily looks between both women for a few seconds, before nodding. “Can we go to the zoo tomorrow, mommy? You said we could.” She says, pointedly looking at her mother. Kelley rolls her eyes. ‘Kid doesn’t forget anything.’ She thinks, before nodding. “We can go to the zoo. Maybe Hope will wanna come.” She answers, softly. Lily nods, trying and failing to suppress a yawn. “I’ll let you two sleep. See you in the morning.” Hope says, softly, waving at Lily. The child returns the sentiment, while Kelley stands up and pecks Hope on the lips, earning a sleepy ‘ewwww’ from the four-year-old. Kelley rolls her eyes, but smiles up at the keeper. “Get some sleep.”

 

* * *

 

 

By the time Kelley gets her ‘late sleeper’ up and dressed, she can smell the coffee wafting through the house. It’s around 8:30, which is around the time Lily usually wakes up. Today though, Kelley made sure she was up and ready to go. “Good morning, Hopey.” Lily grumbles out, as she walks into the kitchen. Hope turns around, making eye contact with Kelley, who shoots her a smile. “Morning, Lil. What kind of pancakes do you want?” She asks the child, who’s made her way to the dining room table to take a seat. “Chocolate chip, please.” She says, before folding her arms on the table and laying her head down, dramatically.

 

“Morning.” Kelley says, smirking up at the brunette, as she approaches. “Good morning.” Hope replies, wrapping her arms around the woman. Kelley melts into the embrace, resting her head on the keeper’s chest, content to stay there for as long as she can. Hope places a kiss on the top of her head. “Coffee?” She offers, earning an affirmative response. Kelley sighs and steps back, allowing Hope to continue to prepare breakfast, while she leans against the counter and watches.

 

“These are the best pancakes I’ve ever had.” Lily states, as she finishes her third (small) pancake. Kelley furrows her eyebrows at the child and opens her mouth, in shock. “Better than mine?” She asks, shooting a joking glare at Hope. “Mhm.” Lily says, while taking another bite. Kelley scoffs, while Hope tilts her head, cockily, at her small victory, her face clearly showing her excitement over it. “Don’t get too excited, Solo, she says that every time I cook something for her.” She retorts, slightly amused at the pride Hope took from such a small sentiment.

 

“Hopey, you gotta come to the zoo with us. There’s bears. And foxes!” Lily exclaims, after breakfast. Kelley’s currently helping the child tie her shoes on the bottom stair, while Hope brings their bags back downstairs from the guest room. Hope looks at Kelley for help. “Hope can’t come, baby. She has other plans.” Kelley explains. She doesn’t miss the way Hope’s face falls, slightly. She furrows her eyebrows at the goalkeeper. “Lil, stay here for a minute. I have to talk to Hope.” Hope immediately looks confused, but follows the woman to the kitchen. “Do you wanna come with us?” Kelley asks, leaning back against the counter. Hope shrugs. “I don’t want to intrude.”

 

“The only reason I covered for you was because I didn’t think you’d wanna come.” The goalkeeper tilts her head, questioningly. “Why wouldn’t I wanna come?” Kelley shrugs. “I figured you’d have something better to do on your Sunday off.” She chuckles out. Hope shakes her head. “I’d love to come.” She states, simply. If you had asked her six months ago where she envisioned her life to lead, this certainly isn’t what she would have predicted.

 

* * *

 

 

“Look at him, mom!” Lily yells, excitedly, pointing to the lion who’s sunbathing near the viewing room. “He’s pretty, huh?” Kelley asks, she and Hope trailing behind the child, holding hands openly. Hope looks at the lion through her sunglasses. A hat is placed on her head and she’s comfortable in jean shorts, a black t-shirt, and sneakers. “Hopey, do you see him?” Lily asks, placing her palms on the glass to get as close as she can to the animal. “I see him, Lil. He’s huge.” She chuckles out. They’ve been walking around the zoo for around an hour and they haven’t even seen a quarter of it yet. Lily’s excited about every single exhibit, making it difficult to move quickly, which is perfectly fine with the goalkeeper, who’s enjoying her time spent with the duo.

 

Hope loves getting to know Lily. She’s finally been given the opportunity to see Kelley with her daughter and it’s turned out to be one of the most amazing experiences she’s had. As she watches Lily point, excitedly, at the flamingos, her face bright with joy, she knows her decision to stay was the right one.

 

 


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is just a little filler chapter. I know some of you are waiting for angst, but I'm trying to make this as thorough as possible. I don't want to create angst just for the sake of creating angst, you know? Slow build up! 
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

 

 

“Are you sure you don’t mind watching her?” Kelley asks, as she slides her work shoes on her feet. It’s been about two weeks since they went to the zoo and Donna had called out today. Her sister’s health is declining and Kelley completely supports the babysitter taking all the time she needs to be with her family, but that means Kelley was left with no baby sitter. Thankfully, Hope had offered to take Lily for the day, while Kelley gets through her eight hour shift at the bar. “I’m sure. We’ll be fine.” Hope reassures her. She knows Kelley’s nervous about leaving Lily, who’s been a little bit difficult so far today. The child didn’t get much sleep last night so she’s been acting up more than usual. “I’ll try to leave a little bit early if I can. I’m working with Tom and Saturday afternoons are usually too slow for two bartenders to be working.” She mentions.

 

“We’ll be okay, Kell.” She states, as Kelley puts on her jacket. She walks into the living room and says a quick ‘goodbye’ to Lily, who’s watching a movie, before pecking Hope on the lips. “I’ll call when I’m on break.” She says, softly. “Have a good day.” Hope says, as Kelley walks out. She sighs, before making her way to the living room. “What do you wanna do today, Lil?” She sits down on the couch opposite to the one Lily is currently on. The blonde looks at her and shrugs.

 

The two sit, in silence, while Lily watches the rest of her movie. Hope looks through her email and responds to a few, trying get something productive done. “My movie’s over.” Lily mumbles, grumpily, looking at Hope. The goalkeeper places her phone on the table in front of her and looks at Lily. “What do you want to do?” Lily shrugs, once again. “You’re the grown up. You’re supposed to know.” She says, crossing her arms in front of her. Hope tilts her head, slightly. It’s the first time that she’s seen Lily be less than sweet and she assumes this is what Kelley meant when she spoke about Lily’s ‘grumpy days’.

 

“Well we could go to the grocery store and find something for dinner tonight. We could play some games. We could go outside. We could go to the park.” Hope lists off options for the four-year-old. She knows the child isn’t gonna choose the grocery store, but Kelley had asked her to go pick up some food so she figured she’d add that in there as an option. “Outside.” Lily grumbles. Hope nods and stands up, motioning for Lily to do the same. “How about we go to the grocery store for mommy? Then when we come home, we can go outside.” Lily furrows her eyebrows, contemplating the offer. She nods, in agreement. Hope helps her pick out clothes and change, before the two head out.

 

The day goes by without much incident. They went to the grocery store and made a stop at the park, where Lily played for about an hour. They both talked to Kelley when the bartender got her break. Apparently, Tom had agreed that he would cover her if she wanted to leave early. She should only have around another half hour on her shift before she comes home. Hope thinks she might actually make it through the day. It isn’t until Lily wants to go outside to play soccer that Hope finds herself in a messy situation. Hope had found a soccer ball in Lily’s room and made the offer to the child, who quickly agreed. Lily’s mood had gone up since this morning, which Hope is thankful for. 

 

The two settle on a small grassy space right outside the apartment building and Hope kicks the ball to Lily, who tries her best to kick it back without tripping over it. Hope kicks the ball back to the girl, but it bounces off of her small legs and rolls into the empty parking lot. “I’ll get it, Lil, don’t go over there.” Hope states, before jogging after the ball. She doesn’t notice Lily try to run after her until she hears a ‘thump’ and the immediate sound of crying.

 

She turns to see Lily on the ground, her cheek, hands, and knees scraped up from the pavement. She immediately feels panicked. ‘What will Kelley think?’ ‘Will she be angry?’ ‘Was this my fault?’ Questions quickly flicker through her head. Hope picks up the ball, before rushing over to her. Big tears make their way down the child’s face, as she looks up at Hope, helplessly. “You’re okay, Lil.” She says, softly, as she easily scoops her up in her arms. She hugs her close, as she makes her way back inside. Lily sobs into her shoulder, while Hope does her best to console her.

 

“It’s okay. You’re okay.” Hope says, softly. She tosses the ball onto the couch on her way past the living room. She makes her way into the bathroom and sits the four-year-old on the toilet seat cover, while she gets the first aid kit out of the cabinet. The only sound that can be heard in the apartment is the sound of Lily’s sniffles, as she looks down at her bleeding knees. “I want m-mommy.” Lily sniffles out. Hope looks at her and nods. “I know. She’ll be home soon, Lil. I’m gonna make it better okay?” Lily nods, in response.

 

Hope feels herself start panicking when she hears the sound of the door to the apartment unlock. She was supposed to be watching her and failed miserably. Lily starts crying even harder, when she hears the sound of her mother arriving. “I’m home.” Kelley calls out. As soon as she hears the familiar sound of her daughter crying, she rushes towards the sound. “What the fu-“ She cuts herself off. “What happened?” She corrects, at the sight of Lily bleeding. A rather large scrap located on her right cheek immediately alarms her. She looks at Hope, who looks nothing short of guilty.

 

“I’m so sorry. We were playing soccer outside and she fell on the pavement. I didn’t mean to-I didn’t…I’m sorry.” She stutters. Kelley ignores her and instantly starts working on cleaning her daughters cuts. “You’re okay, baby. Just a few little scraps.” Kelley coos, softly, trying to calm her. Hope quietly makes her way out of the bathroom, trying to stop herself from getting worked up. She waits in the kitchen, busying herself by putting away the rest of the groceries.

 

After around 15 minutes, Hope hears footsteps making their way down the hallway. She sees Kelley walk into the room, slowly, Lily nowhere in sight. “Is she okay?” Hope asks, nervously. Kelley cracks a smile, trying to ease Hope’s guilt. “She’s a kid, Hope. She’s gonna fall. That’s what they do.” She chuckles out. Hope looks at her. “You’re not mad?” Kelley shakes her head. “You didn’t do anything wrong. She fell. She has a few scraps. It happens.” She laughs. Hope nods, but the guilt doesn’t lessen. “The first time she fell, I thought I was the worst mother in the world. Her lip was bleeding because she hit it on the table.” She explains, hoping to ease the keeper’s guilt.

 

“Is she mad at me?” The keeper asks. Kelley rolls her eyes. “She’s already playing in her room. She was probably only crying because she’s so tired. She’s fine.” Kelley says, softly, as she approaches the brunette. She wraps her arms around the goalkeeper’s waist. “Don’t feel bad. It happens all the time.” Hope nods. Kelley leans up and gives her a searing kiss. It isn’t until she hears the soft patter of footsteps that she pulls away. “Thank you for watching her.” Kelley whispers, stepping back just in time before Lily walks around the corner.

 

“Hopey, I think you need to clean my room again.” Lily says, matter-of-factly. Kelley stifles a laugh, while Hope tilts her head at the child. “We talked about this, Lil. You’re big enough to clean your room.” She mentions. “But if you do it, then I don’t have to. My face hurts, remember?” She says, pointing to the bandage on her face. Kelley raises her eyebrows at her daughter’s low blow. Some people would look past it, but Kelley knows what Lily was trying to accomplish with that statement. “Lily, it wasn’t Hope’s fault that you fell. You can help clean your room.” She says, in a motherly tone. Lily pouts a little bit, but scampers up to Hope and grabs her hand. “Come on, Hopey, we have to clean my room.” She states. Hope follows behind, listening as Lily babbles on about her toys and how they ‘jump right off the shelves.’

 

 


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry about the delay! I was gonna update yesterday, but with everything that happened I wasn't feeling up to editing.

Once Late-November hits, Hope knows she needs to tell her family about Kelley and Lily. With Thanksgiving coming up, she figures it’s the perfect opportunity. Carli’s going home to New Jersey for the weekend, while Kelley and Lily are spending the holiday together in Seattle. Hope isn’t surprised that Kelley didn’t invite her to spend the holiday with them. Of course, she’d love to be there with them, but she also knows she should probably go see her mom after almost a year.

 

“When do you get home?” Kelley asks, curiously, as she watches Hope pack her suitcase. “We’ll see how it goes.” She chuckles, while throwing some shirts into the open bag. “If it goes well, I’ll probably come home on Saturday. If it doesn’t…” She trails off. “I’ll be back tomorrow night.” She shrugs, indifferently. She and her family either get along flawlessly, or they’re at each other’s throats. Everyone is gonna be there tomorrow, which makes the chances of things going badly sky rocket. “How long’s the drive?” The bartender asks, playing with the edge of a sheet on Hope’s bed.

 

“Around three hours.” Hope mentions. She zips up her suitcase. “All done.” She sighs out. She really doesn’t want to leave. She hates taking the long drive by herself and it doesn’t help that she’s leaving Kell and Lily behind. “I should get going.” The brunette says, looking at the time. Lily should be out of school soon anyway. Kelley stands up and grabs one of Hope’s bags. She helps her her pack up her car, before saying a quick goodbye. “Text me when you’re there.” Kelley whispers, her arms wrapped around Hope’s waist. “I will. Will you guys call me tonight?” The goalkeeper asks, hopefully. It’ll help if she at least gets to talk to the duo while she’s away. Kelley nods against her chest, before the two share a lingering kiss.

 

Hope lets her mind wander during the drive. She’s most nervous about telling her mom. She knows Marcus won’t care, but her mom will probably be disappointed, at least. As she pulls into the driveway of her mom’s home, she knows it’ll be an interesting night. “You came.” Judy says from the front porch, a mug of steaming tea cupped in her hands. “Hey, mom.” Hope smiles, hugging the woman. She grabs her bags and heads to the guest room to unpack a bit and send Kelley a text.

 

It’s just Hope and her mom for the night. Everyone else will arrive tomorrow for the day. She’s not sure who, exactly, is coming. She expects maybe her brother, her uncle, and some of her cousins. Hope finishes unpacking her things, before heading downstairs to spend some time with her mom. She walks into the kitchen just in time for dinner to be served.

 

“Are you seeing anyone?” Judy asks, as the two finish their dinner. Hope stiffens a little bit, knowing she should probably just tell her. “I am.” She answers, smiling softly. “You are?” Her mother responds, surprised by her answer. Judy knows that Hope likes keeping her love life to herself. “Her name’s Kelley.” Hope mentions, casually, playing with what’s left of her rice. Judy doesn’t respond for a few seconds, so Hope decides to just go for it. Get it all out in the open. “And her daughter’s name is Lily.” She glances at her mother to see the shock of the unexpected news clear on her face.

 

“Well, that’s…that’s good.” Judy stutters, slowly, trying to come to terms with it. “How old is her daughter?” Hope smiles, a bit, at the mention of Lily. “Four.” Surprisingly enough, Judy cracks a smile, her body losing some of the tension. “Can I see a picture?” She asks, softly. Hope sighs, in relief, knowing her mom’s okay. She proudly shows off Kelley and Lily, scrolling through the countless images that Kelley’s sent her over the past few weeks. She also shows off some pictures of herself with Lily. “I didn’t know you liked kids.” Judy mentions, as she takes the dirty plates from the table. “I don’t.” Hope chuckles out. “But I love this kid.” She finishes, as she helps her mom with the dishes.

 

“Well why didn’t you bring them? I would love to have another little one around.” Hope rolls her eyes. “I wanted to tell you about them first. Plus, they’re having Thanksgiving together.” She shrugs, drying the dishes with a towel. Judy makes her way upstairs to get ready for bed. It’ll be an early morning for her tomorrow, as she has to cook Thanksgiving dinner for the family. Hope settles in the living room for a few hours, before heading to bed, preparing herself for tomorrow.

 

* * *

 

 

As soon as Hope sees the alcohol come out, she knows something is gonna go wrong. Her anxiety instantly sky rockets. So far, the day has actually been pretty fun. Hope talked about Kelley and Lily and surprisingly, no one had a negative word to say about it. They’re all outside, enjoying the warm day. She sees Marcus and her cousin, Charlie, shot gunning beer as if they’re in the backyard of a sleazy frat house. She rolls her eyes and makes her way into the kitchen to check on her mom. “Need any help?” She asks, looking over her mother’s shoulder.

 

Judy sends her away to go “socialize”, while Hope really just wants to avoid socializing at all costs. She sits at the patio table and looks through her phone, trying to make herself look occupied. “So, I heard your dating a bartender.” Her cousin says, as he sits in the seat next to her. Hope glances up at him and nods. “Mhm.” She responds, shortly. She and her cousin’s relationship had always been a bit tumultuous. He’s never been able to understand her and she hasn’t really put forth any effort to get to know him. “Shouldn’t you, like, stay away from bars?” He asks, his speech slurred slightly. She furrows her eyebrows and puts her phone down, her defenses rising. He’s not one to talk, considering he’s been drunk since before he got here.

 

“No? Why would I?” She asks, tilting her head at him, challengingly. He doesn’t respond, but the eye roll she gets catches her attention. “What?” She asks, clearly annoyed. “You have a problem.” He states. “You shouldn’t be dating a bartender. Especially since she has a kid. You’ll ruin that kid’s life.” He snarls. Hope stands, abruptly. “Fuck you.” She bites out, walking past him. He grabs her wrist. “Don’t.” She growls, trying to rip her arm away from him. “You’re not gonna be a good influence. You’re fucked up. We all are.” He motions around the yard at the rest of the family. “That poor kid shouldn’t have to deal with that.” He spits out, before releasing her.

 

She freezes for a few seconds, adrenaline pumping through her veins. She grabs the back of his seat and tips it, effectively flipping him out of his chair. “What the fuck!” He yells, as he stands. He pushes her back by the shoulders, causing her to stumble a little bit. “This is what I mean!” He yells, approaching her angrily. She sizes him up, not backing down in the slightest. “You’re lucky you’re a girl. I’d have already knocked your ass out.” He growls. She rolls her eyes shoulders him on her way past. He wouldn’t hit her and they both know it.

 

“I have to go, mom.” Hope says, as she walks into the kitchen. Judy turns around, immediately concerned at her daughter’s appearance. She’s visibly shaken, her eyes in a faraway place that Judy can’t gauge. “What happened?” Hope shakes her head. “I just have to go. Thank you for having me.” She says, before kissing her mom’s cheek. She ignores the disappointed glance she gets on her way out. It’s almost as if Judy expected it, but was hoping for the best. Hope packs, quickly, and doesn’t say goodbye to anyone else before she leaves.

 

By the time she gets home, the sun is down and the darkness of the night has settled in Seattle. She hasn’t talked to Kelley since everything’s happened and she doesn’t really want to. The words cut deep, poking at Hope’s biggest insecurities within her relationship with Kelley, her relationship with Lily. She doesn’t have a drinking problem, but she isn’t sure that she’s the best influence for the girl either. Hearing that spelled out in front of her hit a place in her that she’s pushed away since finding out about Lily.

 

It isn’t until Hope sits down to eat dinner that Kelley calls. She looks down at the turkey sandwich in front of her, the closest thing she had, on hand, to an actual Thanksgiving dinner. “Hey, Kell.” She says, trying to sound as upbeat as she can. “How’s it going?” Kelley asks, sympathetically. She knows how much Hope dislikes being around her family for long periods of time. It’s like a bomb waiting to go off for her and her anxiety level is at its peak. “I, uh-I’m back in Seattle.” She says, softly, slightly embarrassed that she couldn’t even last 24 hours in Richland before something went wrong.

 

“Why? What happened?” Kelley asks, her voice picking up on Hope’s disappointment. “It’s just-nothing. I don’t wanna talk about it.” She responds, running her fingers through her hair. “Lil! Hopey’s on the phone.” She hears her girlfriend call out. “No, Kell, it’s okay.” She rushes out, before hearing a small voice take over on the other line. “Hi, Hopey. I miss you.” She says, sweetly, instantly bringing a smile to Hope’s face. “I miss you too, Lil.” She breathes out. “Mommy wants to know if you’ll come over.” She says. Hope rolls her eyes at Kelley’s unfair tactics. There’s no way she can say no to the kid.

 

“Have you eaten dinner yet?” She asks, curiously. “No. Mom just ordered the food.” The child says, thoroughly confusing the goalkeeper. “What did she order?” Lily laughs at the question. “It’s Thanksgiving, Hopey. We _always_ order my rice.” She says, as if it’s obvious. “O-Okay. I guess I’ll come.” Hope responds, hesitantly. “Okay, bye!” Lily says, quickly. Hope hears the ‘click’ of the call ending and shakes her head. “Rice?” She mumbles to herself, before throwing her sandwich in the trash.

 

Turns out, Kelley and Lily always get Chinese food on Thanksgiving. It’s a tradition that the bartender started after Lily was born when she decided that cooking Thanksgiving dinner for two wasn’t really worth it. The three of them eat their food, sharing conversation about whatever Lily brings up. It’s nice, for Hope. She’s not used to having a dinner with no fighting, no tension, but just pure love and ease.

 

Hope carries Lily to bed and tucks her in, placing a kiss to the child’s forehead, before heading back out to the living room. “She still asleep?” Hope nods, before helping to clean up the mess. She clears the table of all the empty cartons and throws them out, while Kelley finishes the dishes. “You want to talk about why you’re not in Richland?” Kelley asks, as she wipes down the table. Hope sighs, knowing it’ll come up eventually anyway. “My cousin said some things. I didn’t want to deal with it so I left.” Kelley rolls her eyes, not surprised that the keeper tried taking the easy way out.

 

“What did he say?” She asks, expectantly. The goalkeeper plops down on a chair, while Kelley makes her way around the kitchen. “He basically said I’m too fucked up to be around a kid.” She says, softly, leaning back in her chair. Kelley freezes, her eyebrows furrowed. “What?” She asks, semi-angrily. She knows about Hope’s insecurities and hates that someone used them against her. “It’s fine, Kell. I just had to get out of there.” She says, clearly trying to brush it off. Kelley shakes her head and approaches Hope. She sits down sideways on the keeper’s lap, her arms wrapping around her neck to keep her balance.

 

Hope looks at her girlfriend and shrugs. “I’m okay. I tipped his chair over.” She says, chuckling slightly at the memory. Kelley rolls her eyes. “You would.” Hope bites her lips. “He pushed me and told me that if I were a guy he’d have knocked me out.” She says, rolling her eyes. Kelley stiffens in her arms. “He put his hands on you?” She asks, angrily. She cups both of Hope’s cheeks in her palms and looks her in the eye. “It’s not a big deal. He didn’t push me down or anything. Just a little shove.” She says, nonchalantly.

 

Kelley shakes her head and sighs. “A push is a push. He shouldn’t have done that.” She states. Hope shrugs. “I instigated it. I shouldn’t have let him get to me. I’m just glad I’m home.” Kelley smiles and places a lingering kiss to Hope’s cheek. “Me too.” She says, before getting up. Hope follows suit and moves to the door to put on her shoes. “Why don’t you just spend the night?” Kelley asks, to Hope’s surprise. She’s never spent the night at Kelley’s apartment. “We can watch a movie tonight and you can make breakfast in the morning.” She says, winking at the goalkeeper.

 

Hope rolls her eyes. “You can make breakfast.” Kelley shakes her head, smirking at the keeper. “Lily likes your pancakes better than mine.” Hope shoots her a glare, jokingly. “Fine.” She finally concedes, before removing her shoes. “I didn’t bring clothes.” The keeper mentions, as they make their way to the living room. She looks down at the jeans she’s wearing and knows they won’t be comfortable to sleep in. “Follow me.” Kelley states, before heading down the short hallway to her room.

 

After shorts that were too short and a shirt that was too tight, Kelley eventually finds a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt that fit comfortably enough for Hope to wear for the night. The two decide to watch the movie in Kelley’s room, rather than moving back to the living room. The night stays innocent, nothing more than soft kisses are shared between them and they drift off to sleep in each other’s arms for the first time.

 

“Good morning, Hopey!” Hope wakes, with a start, feeling a weight settle on her stomach. She slowly opens one eye and is met with an energetic Lily smiling down at her. “I’m hungry.” She states, bouncing up and down on Hope’s midsection. Hope yawns, but finally opens her eyes and gives the child a sleepy smile. “I’ll be right out, okay?” Lily nods, quickly, before jumping off of Hope and scampering her way out of the room.

 

The keeper sits on the edge of the bed, stretching her body. She hears Kelley’s footsteps coming down the hallway. “Best alarm clock out there.” Kelley says, motioning to where Lily disappeared to, as she appears in the doorway. She leans against the frame of the door and smiles at her sleepy girlfriend. Hope sighs, before pulling herself to her feet. “You tell her to come wake me up?” Kelley shrugs. “We’re hungry.” She says, simply, before disappearing down the hallway. Hope rolls her eyes, knowing Kelley had sent Lily to do her dirty work.

 

“Breakfast is done.” Hope calls from the kitchen. Kelley and Lily had made their way into the living room to play a game that Lily insisted upon taking out. She hears the patter of their footsteps, as she places the pancakes on the table and takes a seat. Lily crawls up onto her seat, quickly diving right into her breakfast. Kelley raises her eyebrows at the lack of manners the child is showing, but decides to let it go for today. It is the morning after Thanksgiving, after all. “Thanks for cooking.” Kelley says, pecking Hope on the cheek as she sits down next to her.

 

After they finished eating, Lily rushes to the living room after hearing the theme song to her favorite show coming from the TV in the living room. It’s a rainy Seattle morning and there’s not much for the trio to do outside, so they decide to keep the day pretty low-key, choosing to stay in and make a movie day out of it. Hope helps Lily build a fort out of pillows and blankets for them to lay down in, while Kelley makes popcorn.

 

They’re about halfway through their second movie, when they hear three short knocks at the door. All three of them are laying comfortably in the fort that Hope built. Lily’s settled in between Hope and Kelley, using her mother’s stomach as a pillow and Hope’s lap as a foot rest. Kelley and Hope look at each other, confused as to who would be there. “I’ll be right back.” Kelley whispers, before sliding to her feet. Lily grumbles a little bit at the loss of her pillow, but settles with flipping over and placing her head on Hope’s thigh.

 

Kelley’s eyes widen, as she looks through the peep hole. She excitedly opens the door. “Oh my god, what are you guys doing here?” She asks, as she’s taken into a three-way hug. “We missed you!” Kelley smiles and pulls back, looking at her siblings in a state of shock. She hasn’t seen them since Lily was born. They had come up to Seattle to help her through the first week of having Lily at home, but then they had to leave. She hasn’t seen them, in person, since. She facetimes with them often, so Lily knows her aunt and uncle very well. She just hasn’t truly met them before. “We knew you wouldn’t come to Georgia, so we came to you.” Erin says, peeking around Kelley to look into the living room.

 

“Come in, come in.” Kelley breathes out, allowing the two inside, before closing the door. “Where are you staying?” She asks, noticing the lack of luggage the pair have with them. “The Radisson. We didn’t just want to barge right in and demand housing.” Jerry says, chuckling a little bit. “Where’s my niece?” He asks, looking curiously at the fort made out of sheets. Kelley grimaces, as she realizes Hope’s gonna have to meet her siblings. “I’ll go get her, wait here.” Kelley makes her way back into the living room. She squats down in front of the TV, looking into the fort at her girls. “Lil, guess who’s here?” She asks, excitedly. Lily perks up at the question. “Aunty Erin and Uncle Jerry are here. Why don’t you go say hi?” Lily jumps to her feet and almost takes Kelley out, as she rushes to go see her aunt and uncle for the first time.

 

Kelley swears she sees Hope’s face pale at the mention of Kelley’s siblings. Kelley gives her an apologetic smile. “You want to meet them?” She asks. Hope looks at her for a few seconds. “You think they’ll notice if I just hide in here?” Kelley rolls her eyes and crawls into the fort. “Lily’s gonna want to show you off. I think she’ll blow your cover.” Hope sighs, but sits up. Kelley leans in and places a lingering kiss on the brunette’s forehead. “You gotta meet Hopey! Follow me!” Hope’s eyes widen at Lily’s voice. Kelley stifles a laugh and turns around just in time to see Lily marching right into the fort, while two heads pop in to see whoever it is their niece is talking about. “Hopey, this is Aunty Erin and uncle Jerry!” She says, excitedly.

 

Hope smiles up at them, wishing she wasn’t meeting them for the first time while she’s sitting in a blanket-fort. “This is my girlfriend.” Kelley states, clarifying who, exactly, Hope is. Erin raises her eyebrows, while Jerry doesn’t seem phased. “Nice to meet you.” He says. Hope nods back at him. “You too.” She says. Erin and Jerry stand up straight, while Kelley and Hope crawl their way out of the fort and get to their feet.

 

“Well I should get going.” Hope states, giving Erin and Jerry a smile. “It was nice to meet you.” She finishes, before heading towards the door. She faintly hears the muttered “You too” coming from Erin and Jerry, as she passes. Kelley follows after her. “You don’t have to leave.” Hope looks at her for a few seconds, before reaching down to put on her shoes. “You haven’t seen them in a long time, Kell. Just be with your family.” She says, as she stands up. She gives her a reassuring smile, letting her know it’s okay. “I’ll see how long they’re staying. Maybe we can do dinner tomorrow night. I’ll call you tonight, okay?” Kelley responds. She doesn’t necessarily want Hope to leave, but she also wants to be able to focus on catching up with her siblings. At least for today.

 

 


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another sort of filler chapter that needed to happen for everything to stay on track. This is a continuation of last chapter.

 

 

“I need a drink.” Hope says. She called Pinoe as soon as she pulled out of the apartment complex. “Why? You and the girlfriend get into a fight?” Hope sighs. “Not exactly. I don’t want to talk. Just meet me in a half hour?” She asks, hopefully. Pinoe hesitates. “Please.” Hope throws one last plea out there, hoping it’ll tip the odds in her favor. She really doesn’t want to go alone. “Alright. You owe me one, Solo. Sera was just making dinner.”

 

Hope is already at the bar nursing a drink when Pinoe walks in. They decided against going to The Barrel, so they chose to meet at a small bar down the street from Hope and Carli’s house. Pinoe orders a beer and joins Hope in watching the hockey game that’s playing on the screen over the bar. “Her siblings are in town.” The goalkeeper finally says. Pinoe grimaces. “You gonna meet them?” She asks, unknowingly.

 

“Oh, I met them. I met them while I was sitting in a fucking fort. A fort. Since when do I sit in forts?” She rambles, before finishing her drink in one long gulp. Pinoe cracks a smile. “You were in a fort? Oh, I can’t wait to tell Sera.” She chuckles out. Hope shoots her a deadly glare, effectively dropping the smile from her face. Hope orders another drink. “Well, do you like them?” The goalkeeper shrugs at the question. She kind of ran before she could talk to them.

 

“Listen, Solo, I can’t read your mind.” Pinoe mentions, tipping her glass towards her friend. Hope wipes her face with her hands. “I don’t know. I just don’t know. I left as soon as they walked in. I feel like I might have jumped into things too soon. I’m not ready for all this. I should be focusing on the fucking Algarve and I’m caught up in some bartender and her kid.” Pinoe raises her eyebrows at the tone. She looks at Hope, silently, letting her piece together whatever it is she’s trying to say.

 

“I didn’t…I didn’t mean it like that, I just don’t know what I’m doing. I’m not meant for this, Meg. I’m not good enough for her, for them, I’m just not good for them. I should get out while I still have the chance.” Pinoe rolls her eyes and asks the bartender for the check. She ignores Hope’s questioning glances, as she pays the bill. “Come on. You’re getting too self-deprecating for my liking.” Hope follows her out of the bar, without question. “Get in.” Pinoe motions to the passenger seat of her car.

 

“What are we doing?” The goalkeeper asks, as she puts on her seatbelt. “Getting drunk.” The blonde replies, before backing out of the parking spot. Hope smirks, a little bit. ‘This is why I come to Pinoe about shit like this and not Carli.’ She thinks. She watches the lights of the buildings pass through the window. They pull up to their usual club just minutes later and Hope feels a little bit guilty. She hasn’t been to the club since she and Kelley have been together, mostly because when she would go to the club, it was to pick up girls. Now, she has no idea what she’s doing here.

 

She and Pinoe make their way inside. “Solo! I haven’t seen you in a while.” Mark, the bouncer, says as he opens the door for her. Hope gives him a smile and an awkward nod, before walking past him. “Relax, Hope. Let’s just have fun.” Pinoe says in her ear, as she makes her way straight to the bar. She motions for Hope to follow her. They take a seat and Hope turns around to look around the club. Most places are closed for the weekend, because of the holiday. The owner of the club knows the crowd of people that come here and recognizes that most of them need somewhere to ‘get away’ during family holidays such as Thanksgiving. So they remain open.

 

Hope makes eye contact with a blonde on the dance floor for a split second. She looks away and takes a deep breath, turning back around to face the bar. Pinoe watches the interaction, curiously. She saw the blonde taking an interest in Hope as soon as they walked in. She’s interested to see where Hope wants to take this. The goalkeeper already feels the effect of alcohol taking over. “Can I have another?” A voice says, right next to Hope’s seat. She and Pinoe look over to see the same blonde taking a seat next to the goalkeeper. The bartender nods and begins making her drink.

 

“What are you drinking?” The blonde asks, giving Hope a small smile. The goalkeeper shakes her head. “Nothing.” The blonde smirks a little bit. “Playing hard to get? I’ve seen you around here before. You don’t seem too ‘hard to get.’” She makes quotation marks with her fingers. Hope clenches her jaw, fighting against her instinct to lash out. She decides against responding. She turns away from the woman and faces Pinoe. “Wanna go dance?” Pinoe asks, after seeing the look on Hope’s face. Hope shrugs, but nods her head.

 

Hope and Megan make their way to the back of the packed dance floor. They dance for what feels like hours, making friends and laughing at each other’s moves. Neither of them are great dancers, but for them, that’s half the fun. They meet a couple on the dance floor, Rob and Chris, who have joined them in their antics. Hope gets to know them only a little bit, over the loud music. They couple has been together for just over a year.

 

Hope heads back towards the bar, leaving Pinoe with their new friends while she gets them another round. She’s almost through the crowd of people when she feels a tug at her wrist. She turns around, thinking Megan might have followed her, and is met with the blonde girl who refuses to take a hint. “Dance with me?” She asks, still holding on to Hope’s wrist. She looks up at the brunette, eyes a bright blue. If it had been four months earlier, Hope wouldn’t have hesitated before saying ‘yes’. The goalkeeper pulls her arm away from the woman and shakes her head. “I’m good.”

 

She walks away. She walks up to the bar and orders their drinks. She leans her forearms on the counter as she waits. She feels someone place a hand on her back and instantly stiffens. She turns around and rolls her eyes at the sight of the woman. “I’m not interested.” The blonde tilts her head and moves so she’s standing in front of Hope, a little bit too close for the goalkeeper’s comfort.

 

“Just one song?” She asks, motioning to the dance floor. Hope shakes her head, without hesitation. “Listen, I have a girlfriend. I’m not interested. So if you could just leave me alone, that’d be great.” She says, seriously. She isn’t sure how much more clear she could possibly be, at this point. This isn’t what she came here for tonight. The blonde purses her lips. She hesitates for a few seconds, before nodding. The bartender places the drinks on the counter and Hope turns to grab them. She gives the blonde a nod, as she walks past her and back towards the back of the dance floor.

 

They stay for a few more songs, having plenty of time to finish one last drink. After saying their goodbyes to their new friends, they get into the Uber they had called for. Sera agreed to bring Megan to get her car tomorrow, while Hope plans on asking Carli to bring her to get hers in the morning. Hope looks at her phone once they’re in the car and notices a missed call and a few unread texts from Kelley. She hadn’t checked her phone all night.

 

_Maybe we can go to the Space Needle tomorrow? Jerry and Erin want to see it._

_Just got home from dinner. They went back to their hotel for the night if you want to come over._

_I’ll call you in like a half hour. Lily wants to say goodnight._

_Tried calling. Not sure where you are. Hope everything’s okay._

 

She presses ‘call’ before she thinks about it. She feels guilty that she missed her chance to say goodnight to Lily. It’s just past 1 and she knows Kelley is probably sleeping, but figures it’s worth a try. “Hope?” A groggy voice answers after a few rings. Hope smiles at her sleepy voice. “Hey.” She hears Kelley shuffling around in bed. “Where have you been?” Kelley asks, softly. “I was out with Megan. We’re going home now.” Hope makes eye contact with Pinoe, who grimaces. She isn’t sure how Kelley’s gonna react.

 

“Are you drunk?” Hope tenses up at the question. She’s definitely not sober, that’s for sure. “A little.” She figures honesty would be best right about now. Kelley sighs. “Who’s driving?” She asks, dryly. She’s irritated. It’s the best word to describe how she’s feeling. She’s irritated that Hope would run straight to the club. As soon as she saw the goalkeeper’s face when Erin and Jerry got there, she knew that Hope was freaking out. She had just hoped that the brunette would have dealt with it differently. “Uber.” Hope answers, simply. She knows Kelley’s upset, she can hear it in her voice. She just doesn’t know what to do to change that. Kelley nods, before sitting up in bed. ‘At least they weren’t dumb enough to drive themselves home.’ She thinks. “We’ll talk tomorrow.”

 

Hope opens her mouth to respond, but cuts herself short. She wants to argue that ‘there’s nothing to talk about’, but she knows Kelley won’t take that as an answer. “Okay.” She whispers. “Okay, I’m going back to sleep. Text me in the morning.” Kelley says. She hangs up the phone before Hope can respond. Hope sighs, as she looks down at her phone, ‘call ended’ blinking up at her, tormenting her for digging herself into a hole.

 

“You got your answer tonight, you know.” Pinoe says, breaking Hope’s train of thought. The goalkeeper snaps her eyes to the side of Megan’s head, waiting for her to elaborate. “Did you even think twice before turning away the hot blonde from the bar?” Hope blinks at her, her eyes flicker out through the window, looking at the stream of passing lights. “No, why would I even consider-“ She cuts herself off and takes a few seconds to let the question sink in a little bit more.

 

“You thought I would cheat on her? Is that why you brought me out? After everything I’ve been through you thought I would do that to her?” She whispers, angrily, at the blonde. Pinoe raises her eyebrows. “I didn’t think you would cheat on her, Solo. I was curious to see how you were gonna handle it though.” Hope scoffs. “I would never.” She states, seriously. She’s not lying. Hope knows what cheating does to someone, first hand. Does she have doubts about her ability to be a good role model, a good girlfriend, a good person? Yes. Would she ever resort to cheating on Kelley as a way to get herself out of it? Not a chance.

 

“Okay, okay. I’m sorry. I just wanted to go out and have some fun. Clear your head a little.” Hope sighs and shifts her focus back to her phone. She scrolls through the missed texts from Kelley one more time, guilt settling in her stomach. “I know.” She says, just as the Uber driver pulls into her driveway. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” She mentions, before closing the car door and making her way into the house on shaky legs.

 

Pinoe sighs, as they pull away from Hope and Carli’s. She hadn’t meant to cause a rift between Hope and Kelley by bringing Hope out tonight. The goalkeeper didn’t have to come to the club with her. She chose to come along. She hadn’t meant for everything to happen the way it did, she just wanted to take Hope back to their old stomping grounds. She’s well aware that Hope wouldn’t cheat on Kelley. She didn’t know the keeper would be put in that situation. Hope had handled it perfectly, though. Now she just has to wait and see what becomes of it.

 

Hope plops down in her bed. She’s disappointed in herself. The club was fun. It brought back memories, but it wasn’t like she remembered. It wasn’t anything like what they used to do. It was just a night of drinking and dancing with friends, nothing more. Thoughts of Kelley kept sneaking into her head, reminding her of what her future looks like. Before they went to the club, she was freaking out. She had herself convinced that she couldn’t be the type to settle down, to meet the family, to help raise a kid. By being placed back into an environment that she used to thrive in, she realized how much a few months can change a person. Now, Hope knows where she needs to be, where she wants to be, and that’s with Kelley and Lily.

 

 


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fair warning, I couldn't reread the end of this chapter because my niece is currently forcing me into going swimming. So if there's any mistakes, I apologize!

 

 

Hope pulls into Kelley’s apartment complex, sunglasses blocking her eyes from the bright morning sun. She puts the car in park outside of Kelley’s building and leans forward, placing her forehead against the steering wheel, willing the Advil to kick in. ‘How the fuck did I do this all the time?’ She asks herself, before begrudgingly stepping out of her car. She presses the button for Kelley’s apartment and waits for her to ‘buzz’ her in. The sound of the door goes right to Hope’s head, sending a shooting pain through her.

 

When Hope finally makes her way upstairs, Kelley silently lets her inside, motioning her towards the kitchen. “You want coffee or anything?” She asks, in greeting. Hope sighs, as she plops down at the kitchen table. Kelley’s pissed and the goalkeeper knows it. “No thanks.” She replies. She watches, as Kelley makes her way around the kitchen, making herself a cup of coffee. Lily’s already off to school for the day, so they have the apartment to themselves.

 

“I’m sorry.” Hope tries to start the conversation they’ve been putting off since she walked in. “I can’t do this, Hope.” Kelley states, before placing her mug on the counter and crossing her arms in front of her. She leans back against the counter top and shakes her head at the goalkeeper, whose face drops at Kelley’s words. “What?” Hope asks, looking at Kelley with furrowed eyebrows. “I can’t do this if you’re gonna run to the club or the bar every time you get scared. I can’t have that in her life. I refuse to allow that in her life.” Kelley doesn’t have to specify who ‘her’ is. Hope hears her loud and clear.

 

“I didn’t…I’m sorry.” Hope says, wracking her brain, trying to come up with a valid excuse. She doesn’t find one. “I know you’re sorry. That doesn’t make it better. Lily was so excited to tell you about her day last night and you didn’t pick up the phone. I had to tell her you went to sleep early. I don’t like lying to my daughter, Hope. She deserves better than that.” Hope sinks down, in her chair. She ashamed that she disappointed Lily, she wasn’t there for her. “You deserve better than me. She does too.” Hope whispers, just loudly enough that Kelley can make out what she said.

 

“No. You don’t get to do this. Don’t start with the whole ‘woe is me’ shit. You fucked up. I don’t even want to know what you guys did last night, do I? Do I want to know what happened?” Hope tilts her head at the insinuation. She tries calming herself, slowing her racing pulse. “You too, huh? Everyone thinks I’m this fucking cheater? You really think that little of me?” She asks, tilting her head at her girlfriend. Kelley raises her eyebrows, challenging Hope to turn this around on her.

 

“I don’t know.” Kelley surprises herself with the response. She blinks a few times, looking at Hope, who nods her head. “Good to know.” The goalkeeper says, as she stands. Kelley walks after Hope, who’s made her way to the door. “No.” She says, grabbing Hope’s wrist. “You don’t get to walk out. We’re talking about this, right now.” She states. Hope freezes, one hand on the door knob, the other trapped between Kelley’s hands. “You think I would ever cheat on you? You think I would ever do that to you? Do you really?” She asks, softly, her eyes on the doorknob. “No.” Kelley whispers. She tugs at Hope’s wrist. The goalkeeper turns around to face Kelley, her other hand falling from the doorknob.

 

“I’m sorry I got so drunk. I’m sorry I missed Lily’s call. I’m sorry I didn’t respond to your texts. But I’m not sorry that I went out. If you can’t trust me, we should just end this now. I turned someone away last night. She came onto me and I turned her away. I wouldn’t hurt you, Kell. I know what that feels like.” Kelley closes her eyes and takes a breath. She hadn’t meant for the conversation to come to this. She really does trust the goalkeeper, she just wanted to get a rise out of her. She succeeded in that.

 

“I trust you. I do. I shouldn’t have said that, I’m sorry. It has nothing to do with me not trusting you. It has everything to do with drinking. I know it sounds stupid, coming from a bartender, but I don’t want Lily to be around someone who’s dependent on alcohol. I can’t have you coming home drunk.” Hope nods. “I know.” She whispers. “I’m not…dependent on alcohol. I just-Last night, I needed to get away and think about everything. Pinoe took me to the club. I shouldn’t have gone, I know that, but it helped, Kell. I know what I want now.”

 

Hope looks at Kelley, trying to will her to believe what she’s saying. “You and Lily are what I want and I’m sorry I doubted that. It’s just…meeting Jerry and Erin made everything very real. I didn’t mean to react the way I did.” Kelley sighs and pulls Hope closer until they’re standing toe-to-toe. “Don’t do that again. Don’t let her down. Once is okay, once is forgivable. There can’t be a second time.” She says, softly, eyes boring into Hope’s.

 

“There won’t be a second time.” The goalkeeper whispers. She reaches out and places a hand on Kelley’s hip, before leaning down to kiss her, softly. “I’m sorry.” Hope says, once again, against Kelley’s lips. “I forgive you.” Kelley says, honestly, before pulling away. “Erin’s getting married.” She blurts, a grimace making its way onto her face. “Next month, before Christmas, she’s getting married. She wanted to wait and tell me in person. She invited me.” Hope raises her eyebrows. “In Georgia?” Kelley nods, slowly. Hope doesn’t respond. They both know what that could mean, what that does mean. If Kelley goes, she’ll be forced into talking to her family, her parents. Lily will be put in an awkward situation that she shouldn’t have to be a part of. If she doesn’t go, she’ll be missing out on one of the most important days of her sister’s life.

 

“I have to go. I can’t miss out on that.” Kelley mentions, looking at Hope to see her reaction. “Will you come with me? With us?” Hope’s eyes widen. “Me? Come with you? I’d have to meet people. I’d have to meet your parents.” She rambles. Kelley rolls her eyes and makes her way back into the kitchen, Hope following behind. “So? Lily has to meet them too. It’s not like we have to talk to them for long. Erin said they know I’m invited, so they should be expecting us.”

 

“I-I mean, yes. Of course I’ll come, but I just don’t want you to be forced into coming out to your family just so I can be there.” She watches Kelley’s eyes drop to the ground. “I can’t be any more of a disappointment to them than I already am. I’m already out of their lives, why would they care?” Hope’s heart breaks, a little bit for Kelley. The bartender has always done a good job of hiding her feelings, hiding the hurt she still feels from her parent’s blatant rejection. Hope takes Kelley into her arms, pulling her into her chest. “I’ll be there.” She whispers into her hair.

 

* * *

 

 

“Where’d you guys meet?” Erin asks. The four of them are driving through the Seattle traffic, making an attempt to get to the Space Needle. Erin and Jerry have never seen it and Kelley thought she’d take them, but with the rush hour traffic, it’s becoming next to impossible. Lily’s taking a nap in the backseat next to Erin, while Jerry’s riding shotgun. “We met at the bar.” Kelley answers, with a chuckle. She looks in the rear-view mirror to catch the disapproving look she gets from her sister. “What? Where else am I supposed to meet people? I’m either working or I’m with Lily.” Erin rolls her eyes.

 

“What does she do?” Kelley looks at Jerry, who decided to join into the conversation. “She’s a professional athlete. Plays soccer for the national team.” The bartender answers, smirking at the surprised glances she receives from her siblings. “Is she good with this one?” Erin asks, motioning to the sleeping child. Kelley nods, quickly. “She’s great with her.” Erin nods, accepting the answer. Kelley gives her phone to Jerry and has him text Hope, who’s waiting for them at the needle. The goalkeeper probably thinks she’s being stood up by an entire family of people with how long it’s taking them to get there. They’re already fifteen minutes late and they still have a few blocks to go.

 

When they’re finally parked, they walk towards the entrance. Kelley sees Hope waiting for them on a bench. The goalkeeper hasn’t noticed them yet, her focus on her phone. “There she is, mom! Can I go see her?” Kelley laughs at Lily’s excitement. “Go for it, Lil.” She states, after deciding they’re close enough to Hope that Lily should have no trouble making the short run to her. At that, Lily runs as fast as her small legs will take her. Hope looks up just in time to catch Lily, who’s already wrapped her arms around the keeper’s neck. Kelley smiles at the sight, while Erin and Jerry watch in surprise. They hadn’t realized how close their niece has already gotten to Hope.

 

“Hey.” Kelley states, as they approach. Hope smiles and stands, picking Lily up with her and placing her on her hip. Kelley pecks Hope on the lips. “Let’s go, people, I want to see this needle!” Erin says, not breaking stride as she walks past the trio and heads for the entrance. Kelley rolls her eyes, but grabs Hope’s hand and follows after her sister. Erin and Jerry insist that they take the stairs. “We have to! It’s like a rite of passage!” Jerry says, motioning for them to follow. Hope and Kelley share a knowing look. This is gonna be a long trip.

 

“Mommy, my legs can’t go anymore!” Lily says, loudly. They’re only about a quarter of the way up and Lily’s already tired. It doesn’t help that she had just woken up from a nap before they arrived. “You want me to carry you?” Kelley asks, earning a nod from her daughter. Hope looks at her girlfriend, sympathetically. Jerry and Erin walked up ahead, leaving Hope and Kelley to help Lily make it to the top. “We’re having dinner up there, right?” Hope asks, as Kelley placed Lily on her hip and they continue their trek up the steps.

 

Kelley quickly shakes her head. “No. Way too expensive.” She states. Hope looks at her for a few seconds. “I was gonna pay…” She trails off, not wanting to step on any toes, but she does want to treat them to a nice dinner. Kelley shakes her head. “You’re not paying for us.” She states, seriously. Hope sighs. “But I just want us to have a nice dinner. I have the money, Kell, let me do this. Please.” Kelley takes in a deep breath. Her legs are already burning from Lily’s extra weight.

 

“You’re not paying. I don’t need you to buy me dinner.” The bartender says. Hope’s shoulders drop a little bit, in disappointment. “But I-“ She’s cut off by Kelley, who’s allowed her frustration to take over. Between carrying Lily, walking up hundreds of steps, and Hope’s insistence, she’s overwhelmed. “I don’t need you to buy me anything, Hope. I don’t need you.” At that, the goalkeeper stops walking. Kelley keeps the pace she’d set, not realizing that Hope had fallen behind. She looks over her shoulder to find the brunette standing still, strangers making their way around her to continue up the steps.

 

Lily looks at her mom, then at Hope. She knows something happened, but she doesn’t know what. She glances between the adults. “I didn’t mean it like that.” Kelley states. She walks back down the steps until she reaches the one right above Hope, who looks almost shocked at Kelley’s outburst. “Shit.” Kelley whispers. She reaches out and lifts Hope’s chin with her forefinger. Hope raises her eyebrows, waiting for Kelley to explain herself. “I didn’t mean it like that.” She repeats. “I just…I don’t need you to spend money on us. I don’t need you, but I want you. I want you with us.” She says, softly, trying to backtrack on the very blunt statement she’d previously made.

 

Hope nods a couple times. “Okay.” She says, softly, before walking around Kelley and continuing up the steps without looking back. She doesn’t want to talk about this in front of Lily. She knows the girl has already heard too much and there’s no reason for her to be involved. Kelley sighs, before following after her. She doesn’t try and talk to her, deciding to let it be, for now. Lily kicks her feet, signaling she wants to get down. Kelley complies and Lily quickly makes her way up the steps, heading for Hope. She reaches out and tugs at the back of Hope’s shirt, gently. “Hopey, will you carry me? Mommy’s too slow.” She says, looking up at the keeper, who’d turned around to face the child.

 

She turns her back to Lily and bends down. “Grab on.” She says, grabbing a hold of Lily’s legs. Lily jumps up onto Hope’s back, wrapping her arms around her neck, securely. Kelley rolls her eyes at the interaction. Lily jumped ship. She continues up the steps, lagging behind Hope and Lily, a little bit. She didn’t mean to let her frustration bubble over the way it did, but she’s always been someone who’s refused to be a charity case. She’s gotten to where she is by herself. She doesn’t need her parents anymore. She doesn’t need anyone to help her. She knows she shouldn’t have taken it out on Hope.

 

“Are you and Mommy in a fight?” Lily asks, in Hope’s ear. Hope continues climbing up the steps, 40 pounds weighing on her back. “No, we’re not in a fight, Lil. Don’t worry.” She responds, easily. Hope knows that Lily’s more observant than she gives her credit for. “How much longer?” The child asks, in response. “Almost there.”

 

When Hope finally walks up those last few steps, she’s relieved. She bends down so Lily can slide off her back. Lily immediately catches sight of her aunt and uncle and she rushes over to where they’re standing. She waits near the stairs for Kelley, who arrives just a minute later. “I’m sorry.” Kelley says, as she approaches the goalkeeper. She looks around, her eyes searching for Lily, who she finds babbling about something with Erin. Hope shrugs. “It’s fine. No big deal.” She brushes it off, hoping to just drop the conversation, as a whole. Kelley sighs and grabs Hope’s hand, tugging her over to the viewing deck.

 

Kelley turns her back to the view, leaning against the railing to face Hope. “I’ve gotten to where I am by myself. I’m independent, I don’t like relying on anyone for anything. I don’t need your money and I’m not gonna let you spend it on us.” She knows Hope would have been content with brushing the whole thing under the rug, but it’s something that’s gonna come up again if they don’t talk about it now. Hope sighs and allows her eyes to scan the view that she’s seen so many times before. She looks down at Kelley and bites her lips, in thought.

 

“I get it, I do, it’s just…I don’t want it to be a thing. I don’t want it to be an issue between us. I just wanted to have a nice dinner with you and your family. That’s all.” Kelley rolls her eyes. “You wanted to impress them.” She states, raising her eyebrows, almost challengingly. Hope scoffs. “Impress them? With what? It’s not like I’m a fucking millionaire, Kelley. You make it seem like I’m some stuck up bitch who wants to show off all the cash I make.” She narrows her eyes at the bartender, slightly offended with the tone Kelley’s using.

 

Kelley shrugs. “Well you’ve gotta make more than I do.” Hope rolls her eyes and takes a small step away from Kelley. “Is this really becoming an issue? I offered to pay for dinner, that’s it. You’re making it seem like I just offered to buy you a fucking house. We won’t go to dinner, okay? I’m sorry I even fucking offered.” She tries keeping her voice level, crossing her arms across her stomach. She clenches her jaw, as Kelley looks over her own shoulder to look at the view. “Maybe I should just go.” Hope says, softly, after not getting a response.

 

Kelley shrugs, refusing to look at Hope, who takes the silence as reason enough to leave. “Call me later, if you want.” The goalkeeper states, coldly. She turns to walk away, but is stopped by Kelley’s hand on her arm. “Don’t go.” She says, softly. Hope turns back around to look at her girlfriend, expectantly. “Shit.” Kelley states, as she runs her fingers through her hair. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry, I-“ She cuts herself off and turns to face the view, leaning her forearms on the railing. Hope settles in next to her, her hands gripping the railing, waiting for Kelley to finish.

 

“I didn’t mean to get so fucking defensive, I just-“ Kelley wipes her face with her hands, trying to piece together what it is she’s trying to say. “I don’t need your help with money. I’ve haven’t needed help with money since Lily was born. I don’t make that much, Hope, but I’ve learned how to budget everything in. I didn’t mean to be such a bitch about it. I’m sorry.”

 

Hope nods. She gets it. Kelley’s proud. She’s proud of the way she’s been able to take care of Lily, take care of her family on what she makes at the bar. She works long hours to make sure everything is paid for. The goalkeeper didn’t mean to undermine that. “Okay.” She states, simply. “Jesus, we’ve had a rough twenty-four hours, huh?” Kelley asks after a minute of silence, chuckling softly as she looks up at the brunette. Hope cracks a small smile. They have been arguing more than usual, but she supposes that’s normal.

 

Kelley grabs Hope’s wrist, lifting her hand off the railing and she slides her body in front of the goalkeeper. Hope has a hand on each side of Kelley. Kelley leans up and places a chaste kiss to Hope’s lips. She leans back a couple inches, before kissing her again, bringing her hands up to the back Hope’s neck. Hope releases her hold on the railing, settling her hands on Kelley’s waist. She moves to deepen the kiss, only for Kelley to pull away. “Later.” She says with a wink.

 

The two move to the other side of the viewing deck to find Erin, Jerry, and Lily. They spend about an hour up there, taking in the view. Lily refuses to leave until she’s seen everything. When they finally make it back to ground-level, Erin insists that they go to The Barrel. She and Jerry haven’t seen Kelley’s workplace yet and they figure they can get some lunch while they’re there. Kelley’s initially hesitant about going there. She already spends enough time at the restaurant, she doesn’t need to spend more, but she eventually concedes.

 

Dinner goes well. They keep the topics light, with Lily being there, and Hope seems to get along well with the siblings. Hope notices the looks that Erin will give her every once in a while. Almost like she’s trying to read her. The goalkeeper ignores them, offering small smiles in return, not wanting to call her out on it. After dinner, Kelley drops them off at their hotel, while Hope goes straight to Kelley’s apartment to stay the night. They had all agreed to meet for one last dinner, tomorrow night, before Erin and Jerry head back to Georgia.

 

 


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry I haven't been consistent. Just gonna warn you that I'm not gonna be able to write this weekend so next update won't be until Tuesday (the earliest). 
> 
> Enjoy!

 

 

As soon as she stepped off the plane, Hope felt out of place. She carried the carry-on bags to the baggage claim, while Kelley carried a sleeping Lily. Kelley knows Hope’s skeptical about being here. After that last dinner with her siblings, the goalkeeper tried to talk her way out of coming to the wedding. It’s not that it went badly, no harsh words were exchanged, but Erin hasn’t exactly tried to hide the fact that she’s skeptical of Kelley’s new girlfriend. It’s something Kelley can’t quite understand.

 

The trio got their luggage and went outside, where Jerry was waiting. He drove them to their hotel, which is only 10 minutes from the wedding venue. After making sure they were settled, Jerry said his goodbyes and left to go pick up his suit. Hope and Kelley spent most of the night at the indoor pool with Lily. Hope tried to help the girl learn how to swim, but usually just ended up getting splashed or jumped on, while Kelley laughed from the lounge chair she watched from.

 

It’s Friday, the day of the rehearsal dinner. They’re all meeting at the location of the ceremony at 4. Erin had asked Kelley to be one of her bridesmaids only last month, so the bartender had to scramble to find enough money to buy the dress and get it altered, but she figured it out. Hope and Kelley found simple dresses to wear to the rehearsal. Hope is currently straightening her hair, while Kelley’s getting Lily out of the bath.

 

“Lil, do you know you’re meeting your Grandma and Grandpa today?” Kelley asks, trying to prepare the girl for the new faces she’s gonna encounter. Lily nods. “Yea, you already told me, mommy.” Kelley smiles, as she wraps a towel around the girl. They make their way out of the bathroom and Kelley gets Lily settled on the king sized bed that they’re all sharing for the weekend. She turns the TV on and let’s Lily choose what she wants to watch while Kelley starts doing her makeup.

 

Hope finishes up her hair and follows Kelley into the bathroom. She watches, as Kelley searches through her makeup bag for whatever it is she’s trying to find. “Are you nervous?” The goalkeeper asks. Kelley looks at the brunette, who’s leaning against the doorframe. She shrugs. “A little. But my expectations aren’t really high.” Hope walks into the bathroom and closes the door so Lily doesn’t hear them talking.

 

“If you don’t want to tell them about us, you don’t have to. I mean-I obviously don’t want to hide, but I don’t want you to be forced into telling them.” Kelley shakes her head, immediately. “I’m not hiding from them.” She states, shrugging. Hope leans back against the closed door and looks at the bartender through the mirror. “Okay.” They fall silent, as Kelley starts doing her makeup. Hope watches for a few minutes, debating on pushing it further, before deciding against it and making her way out of the bathroom so she can start her own makeup.

 

Once 3:30 hits, they make their way outside, where Jerry is waiting for them. Kelley offered to get a rental car, but Jerry had no problem being their taxi for the weekend. During the short ride to the venue, Hope can basically feel the nerves radiating off of Kelley. Lily spends the ride babbling to her uncle about the airplane and how much ‘fun’ it was going through the clouds. Hope couldn’t disagree more. As they pull up, there are already a couple of other cars in the parking lot. Hope can only assume that one of those cars is Kelley’s parents’.

 

Hope helps Lily out of the car, while Kelley starts walking towards the building with Jerry. Hope assumes Kelley wants to talk to her parents alone before she and Lily join them so Hope keeps the child busy for a few minutes, looking at a caterpillar she had found on the ground. When she thinks it’s been long enough, she leads Lily down the walkway. Lily reaches up to grab the goalkeeper’s hand.

 

When they get to the entrance, Kelley’s waiting outside for them with Jerry, a look on her face that tells Hope she’s already talked to her parents. They make eye contact and Kelley just shakes her head. Jerry reaches out for Lily. “Come on, kid. There’s cupcakes inside.” Lily’s face brightens and she skips her way to Jerry, who leads her inside.

 

“Didn’t go well?” Hope asks, grimacing slightly. Kelley shrugs. “It was awkward. We didn’t say much. I told them about you. Mom just walked away and Dad shook his head. He told me I shouldn’t have come. But Erin wants me here, that’s all that matters, I guess.” Her eyes fill up and Hope clenches her jaw. It takes all of her will power to not go in there and tell them just what she thinks of them. Instead, she reaches out and pulls Kelley into her arms. She feels the smaller woman’s shoulders start shaking, slightly. She rubs her back, until the shaking ceases, and Kelley pulls back, wiping her face of the few tears that escaped.

 

She looks up at Hope with watery eyes. “Let’s go get this over with.” She says, softly, before reaching out and grabbing Hope’s hand. She leads the goalkeeper inside, making a show of holding her hand, proudly. Hope locks eyes with Kelley’s Dad, at one point. She recognizes him from the pictures Kelley had shown her. She shoots him a glare, before deciding he isn’t worth her time. “Lil, come on. Come meet your grandparents.” Hope looks at Kelley, confusedly. Kelley just shrugs. “She has to meet them, at some point.” She mutters to the goalkeeper, before leading Lily over to where her parents are sitting.

 

“Mom. Dad. This is Lily. Lily, this is your Grandma and Grandpa.” Kelley says, trying to sound excited about it. No matter how hurt she is, she doesn’t want Lily’s view of her grandparents to be contorted because of her own issues with them. Dan smiles, which comes off as more of a grimace. “Hi, Lily.” He says, reaching his hand out for a handshake. Hope furrows her eyebrows. He’s offering his four-year-old granddaughter a handshake? Karen has the decency to bend down and pull the girl into a short hug. “It’s nice to finally meet you. You look just like your father.” She says, as she stands. She gives Hope a look that makes the goalkeeper think that was supposed to be a shot at her.

 

“You must be Kelley’s friend?” Karen asks, offering her hand to Hope. Lily giggles. “Hopey is Mommy’s girlfriend, Grandma, not her friend!” She exclaims, giggling at the woman’s mistake. Karen’s face hardens and she retracts her hand before Hope can shake it. “She knows?” She whispers, harshly, at Kelley, who nods. She looks down at Lily, who thankfully got distracted by Erin, who wanted to say ‘hello’ to her niece.

 

“Of course, she knows, Mother. She loves Hope.” Karen scowls, distastefully, as she looks Hope up and down. Hope doesn’t say anything. She doesn’t want to give Dan and Karen any reason to hate her more than they already seem to. “I’m sure she does.” She says, glaring at the goalkeeper. Kelley rolls her eyes. “Hope hasn’t done anything wrong, so if you could stop sizing her up, that’d be great.” She says, trying to diffuse the situation.

 

“Hasn’t done anything wrong? She pulled you into her life of sin.” Hope actually falters at the words. ‘Life of sin?’ She thinks. Hope’s never been exposed to this type of homophobia. She’s lived in Seattle most of her life. She remains silent, refusing to take the bait. “Pulled me in?” Kelley laughs, her hand still gripping Hope’s. “I pursued her.” She states. She knows it’s only a half-truth, but she just wants to shut her mother up. “Okay, Kelley, that’s enough.” Dan jumps in.

 

Karen looks traumatized by Kelley’s admission. She looks up at Hope, who’s trying to hide the fact that she’s visibly shaking at this point. “You’re disgusting.” She spits out, keeping her voice down as to not attract any attention from anyone else. “You’re disgusting and you’re vile.” She finishes, looking directly into blue eyes. Hope blinks a few times, but doesn’t respond. She hasn’t said anything this entire conversation and she’s still getting attacked.

 

Erin was walking up behind her parents when she heard her mother’s words. ‘Is she really gonna do this on the day of my rehearsal?’ She thinks. “Mom, that’s enough.” She states, glaring at her mother, who’s eyes are still glued to Hope’s. Hope looks away first, deciding she’s not worth it. She feels Kelley give her hand a reassuring squeeze. “We’re about to start. I need you three.” She says, motioning to Kelley and her parents.

 

Hope stands off to the side with Lily, while everyone goes over what they’re doing. When Lily starts getting impatient and fussy, she takes her outside. “Hopey, this is boring.” The child says, petulantly. Hope smirks. “I know it is, Lil. They’re almost done, then we get to go to dinner with your Aunt and your Uncle. And your Grandparents.” Lily shrugs, kicking at the pavement beneath her feet. Hope walks over to a set of concrete steps that lead to a picnic area and takes a seat on the third step.

 

Lily walks up the stairs, past Hope, and looks at all the different flowers that had been planted. She picks two red flowers, before making her way back down the stairs to Hope. She knows something’s wrong. She knows what her mom looks like when she’s upset and Hopey has seemed sad ever since they got there. She sits down next to her and extends her arm. Hope smiles, looking down at the flower. “Thanks, Lil. Is the other one for your mom?” Lily nods, excitedly.

 

“You’re the best.” The goalkeeper states, pulling the child into a side hug and planting a kiss to her head. Lily smiles, before sliding herself onto Hope’s lap. Hope almost rolls her eyes, a little bit, at how easily the girl snuck her way closer. In any case, she wraps an arm around her, while the other rests on her lap, playing with the flower Lily gave her. Lily reaches out and grabs Hope’s phone, immediately going to one of the games she likes to play.

 

Kelley listens to everything Erin tells her. It’s simple, really. Wait until the doors open, walk down the aisle, stand behind Britney, Erin’s maid of honor. It shouldn’t be taking this long, but Karen is still fired up about her ‘altercation’ with Hope and isn’t really listening to what’s being said. Kelley notices Hope and Lily sneak outside and sighs in relief. At least now, if Karen blows up, Lily won’t have to witness it. Eventually, they get it down well enough to feel confident that it will go as planned tomorrow.

 

They all make their way outside and Kelley looks around for her girls. She finds them sitting on the steps, Lily on Hope’s lap and Hope’s phone in her hand. Hope smiles up at her. “We’re all done. You ready to go eat?” Lily perks up at the mention of food and nods, enthusiastically. She jumps off of Hope’s lap and holds the flower out to Kelley, who takes it, proudly.

 

The dinner goes by without any more altercation. Kelley, Hope, and Lily are seated at their own, small table so they didn’t have to make small talk with people they didn’t know. Nothing more than a few glares were exchanged between Kelley’s parents and Hope and Kelley. It’s clear, to Hope, that Karen and Dan don’t feel like they’ve done anything wrong. They don’t feel like they owe Kelley anything, including acceptance.

 

Erin thanks them for coming and they head out, along with Jerry, who gets them back to their hotel in one piece. Their night ends, quietly. Neither Hope or Kelley bring up the altercation they had with Dan and Karen while Lily was with them. They simply ignore it and focus their attention on Lily, who insisted upon swimming until Kelley finally decided it was time to settle down for the night.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I meant for this to be longer. I wanted to fit the actual wedding in, but there's no way I'll be able to finish and be happy with it tonight. Hope this is okay, for now!


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back! Sorry for the wait. Personal life got in the way for a while, but I should be back. I'll try to update again next week.

 

 

The day of the wedding went by in a flash. As soon as they woke up, it seemed, Kelley was pulled away to get her hair and makeup done with the rest of the bridal party. Erin had gotten the bridal suite in the same hotel that they’re staying in, so that’s where everyone flocked to. Hope and Lily went along, but mostly just stayed off to the side while everyone else moved around them. Hope and Lily made themselves busy for a few hours, before heading back to their own room to get themselves ready.

 

The ceremony went perfectly. Hope had to strain to hold back the tears that were begging to make their way down her face. Seeing Kelley walk down the aisle in that god-awful bridesmaid dress did nothing to help her cause. “Look, it’s mommy!” Lily had whispered to Hope, as Kelley made her way past their row. Hope can feel the love surrounding Erin and Jackson, the groom.

 

She watches the ceremony with a smile. At one point, she and Kelley make eye contact. Hope gives her smile, which Kelley returns, before glancing at Lily. As the ceremony comes to a close with a kiss, everyone watches as the bridesmaids and groomsmen walk back down the aisle and out of sight. This is what Hope’s been dreading. From here, everyone heads inside to greet the bride and groom briefly, before heading in to the bar area for cocktail hour.

 

Before long, Kelley disappears with the rest of the bridal party to get ready for the reception, leaving Hope alone with Lily and a bunch of people she doesn’t know. “You thirsty, Lil?” She asks the child, who nods. The goalkeeper orders a Shirley temple and straight whiskey, for herself. She leads Lily through the crowd of conversing people and into the reception room, where she finds their seats. Thankfully, she and Lily are placed at the table with the bridal party so she’ll be sitting with Kelley.

 

Hope and Lily busy themselves by looking around at the different decorations surrounding the ballroom. It’s when they’re looking at the wedding cake that Hope notices a man enter the rather empty room. He walks in and starts looking for his table, when he sees Hope and Lily. A look of realization covers his face and Hope watches as his face turns pale. Hope locks eyes with the man, who looks nothing short of panicked, before he backs out of the room and disappears down the hallway.

 

Dread fills Hope’s stomach as she puts the pieces together. It’s him. Kelley hadn’t mentioned him attending the wedding.

 

As the ballroom starts filling with people and cocktail hour comes to a close, Hope and Lily take their seats. Hope watches the entrance like a hawk and sees the man reenter the ballroom and takes his own seat. He sneaks a glance in their direction, his eyes settling on Lily for a split second, before turning his back to the pair.

 

Everyone watches as the bridal party dances their way into the ballroom. Kelley makes her way to the table, as the bride and groom share their first dance. As soon as Hope locks eyes with Kelley, she knows that Kelley saw him. Her eyes are flickering between Lily and Hope, clearly panicked.

 

Hope stands up to greet her. “You look beautiful.” She says, sweetly. Kelley smiles and gives her an appreciative peck on the cheek, before taking her seat. “You look like a princess.” Lily says, smiling up at her mother.

 

Kelley’s face lights up. “Thank you, baby.” She replies. Lily watches her aunt dance with Jackson, smiling and waving at her. Erin sends her a quick wave, in return, before returning her attention to her husband. Hope and Kelley lock eyes over Lily’s head while the child is distracted by the dance:

‘Kyle is here.’

‘I know.’

‘What do we do?’

‘I don’t know.’

The silent conversation happens quickly, before Lily interrupts it with a tug on her mother’s dress. “I have to pee.”

 

Hope watches from her seat, as Kelley and Lily dance. Kelley tried to drag her out there with them, but Hope wasn’t having it. She feels nothing short of unwelcome here. Kelley’s parents haven’t even acknowledged her presence, which is probably for the best.

 

After about a half hour, Hope looks up from her phone to see Kelley talking to Kyle. It looks rather friendly, but Kelley looks over to her and motions to Lily. The goalkeeper gets the message and nods, before watching Kelley follow him out of the ballroom. “Where’d mommy go?” Lily yells over the music.

 

“She had to talk to her friend for a minute, Lil. Why don’t we get you some cake?” The child nods, enthusiastically, and follows Hope to the cake table to get a slice. They don’t even make it back to the table before Kelley walks back into the ballroom and meets them at the table.

 

“I’m meeting him for dinner tomorrow night.” She says, as Lily happily eats her cake. Hope tilts her head, a bit, but nods. “Do you mind watching this little monster while I go?” She motions to Lily, who giggles at the term. Hope rolls her eyes, jokingly. “If I must.” She says, dramatically, pulling a laugh from Lily, who grins at her mischievously.

 

They sit at the table for a while, watching people drunkenly dance their way through the night. Erin finally makes her way to their table, after circulating around the many guests. She sighs, dramatically, as she plops down on the seat next to Kelley’s. “No one told me how fucking exhausting a wedding is.” She says, tiredly. “You guys having fun?” She asks, her eyes flickering between Hope and Kelley.

 

Kelley nods. “It’s been good. You didn’t mention that Kyle was coming.” She states, looking pointedly at her sister. Erin grimaces, guiltily. “Dad told me I was obligated to invite him. I should have let you know. Sorry.” Kelley just rolls her eyes at the insincere apology.

 

“You talked to Mom and Dad, yet, tonight?” Kelley shakes her head, without hesitation. “I don’t want to argue with them on your wedding night and we both know that’s what it would come to.” Erin’s eyes flicker to Hope for a second, before landing back on Kelley.

 

“I mean, when I told you that she could come, I didn’t expect you to flaunt your relationship in their faces. I get it, you don’t want to hide, but it’s like you’re trying to pick a fight.” Hope stiffens at the change of tone, while Kelley just raises her eyebrows, challengingly.

 

“If she were a man, would you be saying the same thing?” The bartender spits out. “Obviously not, Kelley, but you know how they feel. All I’m asking is you don’t make a show of it. It’s my fucking wedding day, for fucks sake.” Erin says, clearly frustrated, before standing up, abruptly, and stalking away.

 

Lily stays silent throughout the argument. She doesn’t really understand what they’re arguing about, but she knows when her mom uses _that_ tone, it means she’s really mad. So she plays with the bracelet on Hope’s wrist and tries remembering what time the pool closes at the hotel. 

 

After Erin leaves, Kelley gives Hope a look that says ‘we’ll talk later’ and stands up to go grab another drink. “Mommy is mad at Aunty Erin.” Lily says, looking up at Hope. The goalkeeper nods, knowing the child is too smart to try and deny what happened. “They just got in a little disagreement, Lil. They’ll be okay.” She responds, trying to be as reassuring as she can be.

 

The rest of the ceremony goes by without any more confrontation. Hope and Kelley avoided talking to anyone who they know disapproves of their relationship and kept mostly to themselves. They took a taxi back to the hotel with Jerry being much too drunk to drive them.

 

“I thought Erin was okay with us?” Hope asks, after they finally got Lily to drift off to sleep for the night. She’s sleeping, soundly, in her own bed, while Hope and Kelley sit on theirs. They both already showered and changed into much more comfortable clothes.

 

“I did too.” Kelley says under her breath. She flicks through the TV channels, trying to find something worth watching. “Maybe she was just stressed out about the wedding. I’ll have to talk to her about it tomorrow or something.” She shrugs, brushing it off.

 

Hope nods, knowing by Kelley’s tone that she doesn’t want to talk about it. “What time are you meeting Kyle tomorrow?” She asks, curiously.

 

Kelley finally settles on a show and tosses the remote to the bottom of the bed. She stretches her legs out in front of her and leans back on the headboard. “6:30. He said he wanted to talk about Lily. I’m not sure what, exactly, he wants, though.”

 

“Do you think he wants to meet her?” The goalkeeper asks, in response. Hope doesn’t know much about Kyle. All she knows is that he left Kelley as soon as he found out about Lily. He looks like a normal guy, from what she saw of him, but something about him doesn’t sit right with the keeper.

 

Kelley shrugs and wipes her face, tiredly. “I don’t know. Maybe?” She says, questioningly. “I don’t want to think about it. It’ll just stress me out. We’ll see what happens tomorrow.”

 

With that, Hope takes the hint and stops asking the difficult questions that Kelley clearly has no answer to. They sit, silently, and watch the show that Kelley had picked until they succumb to sleep.

 

* * *

 

 

“Babe, I need you to help me.” Kelley calls from the bathroom. Hope and Lily were looking through the menus from delivery restaurants that they could choose from, for dinner. “Coming.” Hope responds, as she stands up from kneeling on the floor.

 

“Will you zip this?” Kelley asks, as Hope walks in the room. The goalkeeper’s eyes trail down Kelley’s body. She’s in a tight, peach colored, dress that goes down to mid-thigh.

 

Hope lets her hands drift down Kelley’s back to the zipper. “Why are you so dressed up?” She asks, lightly, trying to hide the worry in her tone. Kelley shrugs. “He told me to dress up.”

 

Hope rests her chin on Kelley’s left shoulder and wraps her arms around her waist, as they look at each other through the mirror. “He trying to charm you?” She asks, semi-jokingly. Kelley rolls her eyes and turns around in her arms.

 

“He wanted to go somewhere that we’d be able to talk without being bothered. We used to go to this place all the time. It’s quiet. We’ll be able to talk without having to yell across the table to each other.” She explains, smirking up at Hope, who’s clearly uncomfortable with the arrangement.

 

“You can’t go to a park or something?” The brunette mumbles, just loudly enough for Kelley to make out what she said. The bartender smiles. “You’re jealous.” She chuckles out. Blue eyes snap down to meet hazel.

 

“I’m not.” Hope responds, defensively. Kelley leans up to peck Hope on the cheek. “You’re cute. But you have nothing to worry about.” She shrugs. Just as Hope was about to respond, Lily walks into the bathroom and tugs on Hope’s hand.

 

“Hopey, come here. I know what I want for dinner!” She says, excitedly. Hope follows her out of the bathroom, shooting Kelley a look over her shoulder.

 

* * *

 

 

Kelley, nervously, exits the hotel. She said her goodbyes to Hope and Lily, who were about to head down to the pool. She smooths the invisible wrinkles in her dress, as the elevator takes her down to the first floor. Kyle offered to pick her up so she didn’t have to spend money on a taxi and even though the bartender doesn’t necessarily want to have to ride in the car with him, it saves her money.

 

She’s a little bit early, so she sits down on a bench in front of the hotel and waits for him to arrive. It’s been a difficult trip home, for Kelley. She’s had to face demons that she never wanted to have to face. Her parents want nothing to do with her, her sister clearly has an unspoken problem with her relationship, and now she’s coming face to face with her first love, her first heartbreak.

 

She sees a car pull up and looks through the passenger window to see Kyle looking back at her. “Hey.” She says, in greeting, as she gets in the car. He’s wearing black dress pants and a blue dress shirt. His short, dark brown hair is styled nicely and his bright blue eyes are looking right through her.

 

“You look good.” He mentions, as he drives away. She smiles, appreciative, but guarded. She knows the hold that Kyle used to have on her. He was her everything, at one point. Now, he’s a stranger with eyes that cut through her like a knife.

 

They sit in silence, the only sound coming from the radio, until he finally pulls up to the restaurant. They make their way inside and the host seats them at the same table that they always used to sit at.

 

“Déjà vu.” Kelley jokes, as she sits down in the chair. Kyle smiles at her and nods, in agreement. “So what have you been up to?” Kelley asks, genuinely curious. She hasn’t heard much of anything about Kyle in years.

 

“I just got out of rehab, actually.” He says, too seriously. Kelley’s eyes widen. “Rehab?” He nods. “A lot has happened since…” He trails off. “…since-well, everything.” He shrugs, knowing Kelley got the point. _Since Lily_. She thinks.

 

They place their food order, both ordering what they had always gotten. Kyle explains his situation. He tells Kelley about the dark time he went through after leaving her. The drugs, the partying, the arrest that led him to a rehabilitation program in Arizona.

 

Kelley listens, trying to ignore the fact that Kyle is trying to make her feel guilty. He speaks, as if it’s _her_ fault that he ended up addicted to heroin. She doesn’t mention it, trying to avoid an argument. She, honestly, doesn’t care enough to try and dispute his ‘woe is me’ act.

 

They get their food after around a half hour of listening to Kyle’s sob story. “So…how’s…uh….how’s Lily?” He stutters out. Kelley suppresses a smile at the mention of her name. “She’s great.” She states, shortly.

 

“I saw your friend with her at the wedding.” Kelley rolls her eyes at the term he uses. _Friend_. Kyle knows good and well that Kelley’s bisexual and it was always an unspoken disagreement between them. Kyle didn’t like having to compete with men _and_ women and he was convinced she was cheating on him with a girl.

 

_I forgot how unhealthy that relationship really was._ She thinks, before finally responding. “She’s my girlfriend.” She corrects, lightly. His lips tighten. “I always knew you’d end up with a chick.” He sneers.

 

Kelley shrugs. “Not like it’s your problem anymore.” She gives it back to him. He pokes at his pasta with his fork. “Is she good with her?” He asks, knowing Kelley knew what he meant. “She’s great.”

 

With that, they fall into a short silence, while they finish eating. “So why did you really invite me here? We both know it wasn’t to ‘catch up’.” She says, bluntly. Kyle’s eyes light up at the question, as if he’d been waiting for her to ask.

 

“I want to meet her.” He states, with a smirk. Kelley’s face drops, her stomach turns to knots when she realizes how this could impact Lily. “No.”

 

 


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys wanted the update today, so here it is! Next one will be up next week.

 

 

Hope and Lily are at the pool when Kelley finally gets back from dinner. Lily’s swimming back and forth in the shallow end, blue floaties on her arms. The pool area is otherwise deserted.

 

Hope sits on the side of the pool with her feet in the water. She times Lily, who insists upon trying to swim from side to side as fast as she can. She still hasn’t cracked 43 seconds in the small pool.

 

When Kelley gets back to the hotel room to find it empty, she changes into more comfortable clothes, before walking down to the pool. She received a text from Hope that let her know where the two would be.

 

“How’d it go?” Hope asks, as Kelley takes a seat next to her. “Hi, mom!” Lily yells out from the other side of the pool.

 

“Hi, baby.” Kelley answers, smiling at the blonde. “It was interesting. We’ll talk later.” She says to Hope, who tilts her head, suspiciously. Kelley shakes her head. “Nothing to worry about. I just don’t want that one overhearing.” She nods her head to Lily, who’s splashing her way towards them.

 

Hope nods, accepting her reasoning. “Mommy, will you come in with me?” Lily asks, as she makes her way to Kelley, who shakes her head. “We have to go back to the room in a minute, Lil.”

 

Lily lets out a displeased groan at having to get out of the water, before she hastily swims away. Kelley rolls her eyes at the attitude, but lets it slide, this time. They stay at the pool for another 15 minutes, before they gather their things and head back up to the room.

 

They end up watching a movie after Kelley gives Lily a bath. They’re only about three-quarters of the way through when Lily falls asleep. Hope tries to ignore the strange vibe she’s been getting from Kelley since she got back from dinner, but it eventually gets to her.

 

“Are we gonna talk about what happened?” She asks, as she turns on her side to face her girlfriend. Kelley sighs, but nods. “Let’s talk in the hall.” She says, softly. The last thing they need is Lily to be woken up by their conversation.

 

Kelley props the door open with the latch so they don’t have to bring a key card. She leans against the wall opposite to their door, while Hope stands right next to their door number.

 

“You were right. He wants to meet her.” Kelley starts. “He’s such a fuck. He just got out of fucking rehab and now he’s trying to tell me he has ‘every right to meet his daughter.’ He wanted nothing to do with her, Hope. Nothing to do with her and now he thinks he can just slide back into her life?”

 

Hope raises her eyebrows at Kelley’s rant. She keeps her cool, trying to calm Kelley down as best she can. “He doesn’t have any right to meet her, Kell. You have nothing to worry about. Just say ‘no’ and that’s that.”

 

Kelley sighs and plays with the bottom of her grey t-shirt. “I know. I said ‘no’. But then he made me feel like an asshole.” She wipes her face, in frustration. “I just don’t know what to do. I want to do what’s best for her, but I don’t know what that is.”

 

“I don’t think meeting him is what’s right. It’s only gonna confuse her when he leaves again.” Kelley nods. She’d thought of that. She’s thought of almost everything since she talked to Kyle.

 

“I know. I know. I just don’t want to keep him away from her and then her hold some sort of grudge against me for it when she’s older. If I let him meet her and he decides he doesn’t want anything to do with us, then at least I tried.”

 

“Hold on, you’re actually considering this?” The goalkeeper asks. She’s perplexed that Kelley’s gone from one extreme to the other in only 24 hours. She wanted nothing to do with Kyle and now she’s thinking about letting him back in?

 

Kelley takes a few seconds to gather her thoughts, before responding. She can feel her resolve begin to weaken at Hope’s judgmental tone. She doesn’t need to be scolded, right now, she needs support. “Of course I’m fucking considering it. This is my daughter’s life. I need to think about what’s best for her. Maybe having a father figure is a good thing.” She speaks with conviction.

 

“He didn’t want her, Kell. What if he decides he wants partial-custody? Hell, what if he decides he wants to try and get full-custody? What then?” The brunette fires off questions at Kelley, who’s eyes narrow at Hope’s arrogant persona.

 

“You really think a judge would give custody to someone who left his child, was addicted to drugs, got clean, then all the sudden decides he wants to be in his daughter’s life?” She bites back. Hope laughs, sarcastically.

 

“Okay, Kelley. You’ve got it all figured out.” Her sarcasm continues, only fueling Kelley’s fire. Kelley stands up and shoots Hope a glare for her lack of support. “Lily could get hurt. What if he fucking leaves again?” Hope follows up with the question.

 

“She’s not your fucking kid, Hope!” She yells, angrily stalking towards her, motioning wildly with her hands. She gets just inches from the keeper’s face, trying to get it through the woman’s head. “She not your kid! You have no right to say what I should or should not do in this situation. So either shut up about it or go the fuck home.” She finishes, loudly.

 

Hope takes a step back at the outburst, her eyes, instinctively, filling with tears. Kelley’s never yelled at her like that and she never expected her to, especially with Lily sleeping just a few yards away. The goalkeeper doesn’t respond, hurt settling deep within her chest.

 

She knows that Lily isn’t hers. She knows that, but hearing Kelley spell it out, loud and clear, lets her know that she’ll never have a true say in what happens with the child’s life. She walks past Kelley, who’s face shows the guilt she already feels over what she’d said.

 

“Hope, wait.” Kelley calls out, lamely. She didn’t mean to explode like that. She didn’t mean to throw all of that in her girlfriend’s face. She watches as the brunette quickly walks down the hallway, before disappearing into the stairwell. She thinks about chasing her, but remembers the little girl sleeping soundly in the hotel room. She can’t leave her, so she sighs, before going back into the room.

 

Hope barely gets halfway down the hallway before feeling her face become wet with tears. She turns into the stairwell and hears the door echo closed behind her. She takes a few shaky breaths and puts her hands on the railing, leaning against it. After a few seconds of gathering herself, she leans back and wipes her face with her shirt.

 

When Kelley pushes the door open, she sees a drowsy four-year-old staring back at her. “Lil, you should be sleeping.” She says, seriously. Lily furrows her eyebrows. “You woke me up.” She replies, sleepily. Kelley sighs and internally berates herself for losing her cool.

 

“I’m sorry, baby. I didn’t mean to be so loud.” Lily just crosses her arms across her chest, as Kelley sits at the edge of the child’s bed. “Were you yelling at Hopey?” She asks, pointedly. The bartender looks at the white bed sheets for a few seconds, before reluctantly nodding her head.

 

Lily doesn’t respond, she just sends a glare to her mom, who looks nothing short of guilty. “I’m gonna apologize, Lil. I didn’t mean to yell, I just got overwhelmed. Lay back down, you need to get some sleep.” The bartender says, seriously. Lily does as she’s told. No matter how mad she is that her mom yelled at Hopey, her eyes are too heavy to keep open any longer.

 

Just as Lily lies her head down on the pillow, they hear the door open. Lily feigns sleep, while Kelly quickly gets to her feet. When she sees Hope’s red, watery eyes, guilt shoots through her chest, once again. 

 

“Hope, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean that.” Kelley says, in a hushed tone, as Hope makes her way back into the room. “I’m gonna go.” Her voice cracks, a little bit, as she speaks. Kelley reaches out to grab the brunette’s wrist, trying to stop her from blindly throwing her clothes into her suitcase.

 

Hope shakes off Kelley’s grip, before getting her essentials from the bathroom. She zips up her bag, ignoring Kelley’s soft pleas. Kelley sees Hope’s shaky hands, her unfocused eyes. She’s completely shut down. “I hope everything goes well with Kyle.” Hope says, softly. She gives Lily a kiss on the head, before walking past Kelley, dragging her luggage behind her.

 

Kelley follows her out of the room and walks quickly after her. She reaches out and grabs her arm, spinning the taller woman around to face her. “Please.” Kelley whispers.

 

Hope shrugs and shakes her head. “Please, what? I don’t know what you want from me, Kelley. You want me in her life, but you want me to shut up when I have an opinion about something?” Kelley opens her mouth to respond, but nothing comes out.

 

“Just do what you have to do, Kell. Tell Lily I had to go home for work or something. We’ll talk when you get back.” Kelley gapes, trying and failing to come up with something, anything, to make this all better. Just as Hope was about to turn and leave, she sees a small, blonde, head peek out of their door.

 

“Hopey?” She says, sleepily, glancing at the packed suitcase to Hope’s right. Hope looks down, not wanting to have to explain this to Lily right now. “Hey, Lil.” She says, lightly.

 

“Please don’t leave. Mommy didn’t mean to yell. Right, mom?” She looks up at Kelley, who nods. “I’m so sorry.” She says, softly, looking directly into Hope’s eyes. Just as Hope opens her mouth to respond, they hear a door open.

 

“Some people are trying to sleep. Could you guys, kindly, shut the fuck up?” An angry woman says, as she sticks her head out of her hotel room door. Hope shoots her a glare and takes a step towards her, planning to deliver a few insults that would shut her right up. But Kelley grabs her elbow to stop her and the woman goes back into her room after seeing Lily staring, wide-eyed, at the confrontation.

 

“Hopey, please come back in the room now. You said we could go swimming again tomorrow, remember? You said.” The blonde says, pleadingly. She walks up to Hope and tugs at the leg of her sweatpants. The older woman closes her eyes for a few seconds and sighs, before nodding. There’s no way she can say ‘no’ to her. “Okay.” She whispers.

 

She makes eye contact with Kelley, as she allows Lily to pull her back to the hotel room, dragging her suitcase behind her. Lily crawls back into bed, once she’s sure that Hope isn’t gonna try and leave again. Hope unpacks the items that she had, carelessly, thrown into the suitcase.

 

Kelley sits on her bed, silently, watching Hope walk around the room with purpose. When she finally finishes, Lily is sound asleep. Hope doesn’t even spare Kelley a glance, before sliding in Lily’s bed. She turns her back to Kelley so she’s facing the wall, leaving Lily on the side closest to Kelley.

 

Neither of them sleep well that night. Kelley’s mind continues to replay her own words.

  _She’s not your fucking kid, Hope._

_You have no right to say what I should or should not do in this situation._

_Either shut the fuck up about it or go home._

_She’s not your fucking kid, Hope_

 

On the other side of the room, Hope tries to accept Kelley’s apology. ‘Maybe she didn’t mean it.’ She thinks. ‘But if she didn’t mean it, why would she say it?’ She thinks about their situation; how close they’ve grown.

 

She never thought of Lily as ‘her kid’ but she thought she had _some_ say in what happens. She thought that her opinion mattered to Kelley. She thought she was considered to be an important part of their lives. Maybe she’s wrong.

 

 


	16. Chapter 16

 

 

Hope wakes up to the smell of coffee. It’s not a natural smell to wake up to in a hotel room, but when she opens her eyes to see a Starbucks cup sitting on her bedside table, she only feels relief. She fell asleep only a few hours ago and her body is making her pay for the lack of rest with a massive headache.

She looks over her shoulder to see Lily and Kelley sitting on the other bed. Kelley has a coffee cupped in her hands, while Lily is eating some fruit out of a plastic cup. That’s when the memories of last night come flooding back into her mind.

 

The coffee no longer smells appetizing and the thought of spending the day with Kelley after what said makes her want to crawl back under the covers and disappear. Instead, she silently sits up at the edge of the bed, facing away from Kelley.

 

She can feel Kelley staring at her, as she wipes the sleep from her eyes and makes her way to the bathroom, without sending so much as a glance her way. She turns on the shower, knowing full-well that she just showered before bed last night.

 

She needs time to think. Think about how she’s gonna handle this. How she’s gonna talk to Kelley with doubts lingering in the back of her mind. How she’s gonna put on an act in front of Lily so the child doesn’t think anything’s seriously wrong.

 

As she steps out of the shower, she faintly hears the sound of the door to the room open and close and a man’s voice sound. Just as she pulls her shirt over her head, she hears Kelley saying ‘thank you’ and the door opens and closes, once again.

 

“Jerry took her for the day.” Kelley mentions, softly, as Hope walks back into the room. Hope doesn’t respond, just looks into the mirror and rubs her hair with her towel. “I told her I would take her swimming.” Hope finally responds, after a few seconds of the TV acting as background noise to their uncomfortable silence.

 

Kelley lets out an airy chuckle. ‘Of course, that’s what she’s concerned about.’ She thinks. “I’m sure she’ll be fine if you put it off until tonight.” Hope shrugs and makes her way back over to Lily’s bed, where she plops herself down and takes her phone off the charger.

 

Kelley watches, as Hope scrolls through whatever app she’s chosen. “Are you just gonna ignore me?” Kelley asks, bluntly. Hope gives her a glance. “I wasn’t sure if you wanted me to talk or not.” She fires back. “Seems like you just want me to shut up and nod my head.” She mumbles, just loudly enough for Kelley to hear her.

 

The bartender sighs, audibly. She doesn’t respond. She doesn’t know what to say to Hope to make this better. She could say that she ‘didn’t mean it’ or ‘it came out wrong’, but Hope wouldn’t believe her. The goalkeeper would only shrug it off and crawl further into her own head.

 

Hope continues scrolling, mindlessly, through Facebook. Kelley sits on her bed and keeps her eyes focused on the television, while she tries to come up with a way to fix this.

 

The sound of a vibration cracks the silence. Kelley looks at her lit up screen on the bedside table. Kyle’s face looks back at her and she contemplates ignoring the call, before giving in.

 

“Hello?” She answers. She ignores Hope, who rolls her eyes. Hope watches, as Kelley stands and grabs the room key off of the bureau and makes her way out of the room.

 

Hope checks her email to distract herself from the fact that Kelley clearly didn’t want her listening in on the conversation she’s currently having with her ex-boyfriend. ‘URGENT’ Hope reads the subject line of the email and notices it’s from Jill.

 

_A friendly was scheduled, ladies. We’re hosting Columbia in Seattle on February 18 th. It’ll be a great warm-up for the Algarve. This also means camp is starting a little bit earlier than we anticipated. Location, date, and times of all events are written below. We expect everyone to be at the top of their fitness level. All 25 of you will be expected to attend camp and be ready to go._

_Camp:_

_Location: Seattle, WA_

_Start date: January 17 th_

_End date: February 20 th _

_Algarve:_

_Travel day: February 22 nd _

_Camp: February 24 th – March 5th _

_Game 1: March 6 th _

_Hope, Pinoe, Carli: We will be expecting at least one team-bonding party, of some sort, for one of you to host. Seattle is your home, after-all._

_Be ready to play._

  * _Jill_



 

Hope sighs, as she reads through the list of players that were included in the group-email. _Ashlyn Harris. Ali Krieger._ She really shouldn’t be so caught off guard. Ash has been invited to every camp for the past couple of years and any coach would be an idiot to leave Ali off the list, but the goalkeeper had hoped that she wouldn’t have to deal with _them_ until the tournament starts.

 

Her train of thought is broken by the sound of the key card sliding into the door, followed by Kelley walking back inside. Hope looks up at her, but Kelley is looking down at her phone, clearly distracted. Neither of them say anything.

 

Kelley sits on the bed with her phone in her hand, while Hope sends a text to Carli about the newly-scheduled friendly. “I’m bringing her to meet him tomorrow.” Kelley blurts out. Hope’s eyes snap up to meet Kelley’s.

 

The goalkeeper wants to argue, but she doesn’t bother. Her opinion isn’t valued and it will only cause more awkward-tension to fill the room. So, she nods her head, distractedly, before shifting her focus back to the electronic device in her hand.

 

She’s not really looking at her phone, but it saves her from having to look Kelley in the eye. The last thing she wants to do right now is get into another argument with her girlfriend.

 

She faintly hears Kelley stand up from her bed, but before she knows what’s happening, her phone is being taken out of her hands and thrown, aimlessly, to the foot of the bed. “What the fuck?” She says, surprised. Kelley just plops down next to her.

 

Hope shifts her body, so she’s leaned up against the headboard, sitting up, with her legs sprawled in front of her. Kelley faces her, and allows her legs to dangle off the edge of the bed.

 

“I’m sorry.” She says, trying and failing to get Hope to look at her. “I’m so fucking sorry. I didn’t mean what I said.” She continues. She brings her right hand to rest on Hope’s knee, willing the goalkeeper to believe her.

 

“Your opinion matters more than anyone else’s does, Hope. You’ve spent more time with Lil than anyone other than me. And Donna.” She adds in the babysitter, knowing Donna’s done more for them than she can every repay her for.

 

Hope shrugs, indifferently. “It’s fine.” She states, halfheartedly. Kelley deflates. This is what she didn’t want to happen. She wants Hope to believe her, not give her some half-assed response to deflect any real conversation.

 

“Hope.” Kelley whispers. The tone catches the goalkeeper’s attention and Hope finally looks up to make eye contact. “If this is gonna be a problem between us, I need to know that. I care about you, but I’m not gonna change my mind just because you don’t agree with me.”

 

Hope shakes her head, defensively. If Kelley was trying to de-escalate things, she sure did a shitty job of it. “Fuck you, Kelley. Don’t turn this around on me. I’m allowed to have opinions, I’m not some piece of ass that’s gonna follow your every fucking direction. I don’t agree because it’s gonna bite you in the ass when he leaves again. But she’s _not my kid_ so my opinion doesn’t mean _anything_.” She states, pointedly.

 

Kelley visibly deflates at the words. She takes a few seconds to gather her thoughts. “I know.” She nods, slowly. “I know you have opinions, Hope. We aren’t always gonna agree. And your right, she’s not your kid.” Hope scoffs and looks away.

 

“Stop.” Kelley pleads, reaching out to rest her hand on Hope’s forearm. “Let me finish.” Hope hesitates, before agreeing to hear her out. “I have to do what _I_ think is best for her. I’m sorry that you don’t agree with me, but I’m not gonna change my mind. That doesn’t mean I don’t value your opinion, because I do. This is just something I have to do for Lily. I have to give her the chance to have a relationship with Kyle.” She stops to gauge Hope’s reaction.

 

“I need you to support me on this, Hope. I need you to trust me. I need you to be here for us if things don’t go the way I want them to. She’s not yours, biologically, she’s his. But, realistically, she’s more yours than she ever was his.” Hope keeps her eyes on her lap, while she listens to what Kelley has to say.

 

“I was stressed. I was stressed and angry. That’s no excuse for what I said or how I said it. I shouldn’t have yelled. I shouldn’t have gotten in your face like I did and I shouldn’t have said what I did.” Kelley states. Hope clenches her jaw, but doesn’t respond. Kelley gets onto the bed with Hope and moves so she’s straddling her legs, sitting on her thighs.

 

“I didn’t mean it. I was an idiot. I’m so sorry I hurt you.” Kelley says, before reaching out to move a stray piece of hair behind Hope’s ear. The goalkeeper nods and glances up to meet Kelley’s eyes. “I know.” She whispers. Kelley bites her lips, but nods in understanding. She isn’t forgiven, yet.

 

“You can’t yell at me like that, Kelley. I don’t care how pissed off you are at me; you can’t get in my face like that. You fucking scared me.” The goalkeeper says, seriously. Kelley’s chest aches at her words, but she knows she was way out of line last night. Hope has every right to be upset.

 

“I know. I’m not gonna make excuses. I was wrong, I get that. It won’t happen again.” Hope accepts that, for now. If it does happen again, she’s not sure how she’ll handle it. This isn’t the first time Kelley’s flown off the handle, a little bit.

 

Kelley reaches out and places her hands on the back of Hope’s neck. “Lily loves you. You know that, right?” She asks, seriously. Hope has to know how much that kid loves her. The goalkeeper nods. “I love her too.” She responds, simply.

 

Kelley looks at her, seriously. Hope tilts her head, trying to gauge where Kelley’s going with this. Kelley sighs and looks down at the white bedsheets. “I don’t want you to think I’m saying this to get myself off the hook, but I need you to know how I feel. I need you to know that your opinion matters, to me.” She looks up to lock eyes with the thoroughly confused goalkeeper.

 

“I just…I love you.” She lays it all out there. Hope furrows her eyebrows and shakes her head, a little bit, at the revelation. She looks at Kelley, who’s looking right back at her. “You don’t have to say it back. I just need you to know.” She repeats the last part. Hope doesn’t respond for a few seconds, before changing the subject completely.

 

“Where are you bringing Lil to meet him?” Hope asks, choosing to ignore Kelley’s statement. Kelley falters, slightly surprised that she didn’t get a direct response to something, she considers to be, important. “Uh-I’m…We’re going to a park downtown.” She stutters out. Hope nods, in response.

 

“I was thinking, since Jerry has Lil until 9 tonight…maybe we could do something? Like a date?” Kelley asks. She’s surprisingly nervous about Hope’s response. After everything that happened last night, along with Hope’s indifference, she’s not sure if the goalkeeper would want to go out with her on these terms.

 

Hope nods, though. “Sure.” She answers, simply. Kelley gives her a small smile. She pats Hope on the thigh, before standing up. “I’m gonna go shower. We can leave in like an hour.”

 

* * *

 

 

They don’t end up leaving the hotel until 5. Kelley seems to have a good idea of where she wants to go. So they get an Uber to drive them. Hope notes the address on the driver’s GPS, but has absolutely no idea where they’re going.

 

When they pull up to a large house that sits in a rather secluded area, Hope feels uncharacteristically nervous. She doesn’t ask questions, though. She simply follows Kelley’s lead and gets out of the car. They walk down the long driveway. “This is where I grew up.” Kelley says, softly.

 

Hope sees a familiar car in the driveway, the same car she had seen at the wedding rehearsal. “Do they know we’re here?” She asks, already nervous about having to face Kelley’s parents. “They know we’re coming. I think my dad is starting to feel guilty about everything and talked my mom into ‘allowing’ us to come over. He said they’d be civil.” She rolls her eyes, a bit, at their ignorance.

 

Kelley doesn’t knock on the front door; she just walks inside. They’re met with a barking dog, who Kelley calls ‘Rudy’. He’s a chocolate lab who looks to be rather young. Kelley’s mom walks out of the kitchen to see what the fuss is about.

 

“Oh, hi.” She says, clearly not happy about their presence. “Hi” “Hi, Mrs. O’Hara.” Kelley and Hope blurt out at the same time. “I just want to show Hope around, then we’ll be out of your hair.” Kelley says, simply.

 

“Where’s Lily?” Karen asks, looking around to see if they brought the girl with them. “Jerry has her for the day.” Karen nods and gives them a tight-lipped smile. “I’ll come say ‘bye’ when we’re done.” Kelley states, before grabbing Hope’s hand and leading her upstairs.

 

They walk down a short hallway. “This was my room.” Kelley mentions, as she opens the door. Kelley hesitates in the doorway, before walking inside. “They didn’t change anything.” She states. She looks around at the bureau, the posters on the wall, the pictures that sit on the shelves, the comforter that still sits on the queen-sized bed.

 

Hope goes straight to the photos. “How old were you?” Hope asks with a smile. She holds up the picture frame to Kelley. “I don’t know, like 4?” Kelley answers, questioningly. She has no idea when that photo was taken, but she takes an educated guess.

 

“When was that?” Hope asks, pointing to a picture of Kelley and Kyle. Kelley’s in a dark blue dress that flows down to her ankles. Her hair is in an up-do, while Kyle is in a tuxedo. “Senior prom.”

 

Kelley steps in front of Hope, facing her, and wraps her arms around her waist. She tucks her head under the goalkeeper’s chin. Hope sighs into the embrace, her eyes still scanning the photos in front of her. A young Kelley playing soccer. Kelley with her friends. Kelley with her first pet dog. It’s like a photo timeline of Kelley’s entire life.

 

Hope places a kiss to the top of Kelley’s head. “I love you too.” She mutters into Kelley’s hair. The shorter woman steps out of the embrace to look Hope in the eye. She cracks a smile, before leaning up to kiss her.

 

It’s Hope, who deepens the kiss. It’s Kelley, who closes the bedroom door and leads Hope to her bed. It’s Hope, who takes off Kelley’s shirt, but it’s Kelley, who flips Hope onto her back and places herself between the goalkeeper’s legs. Hope mutters an ‘I love you’ right before she falls over the edge.

 

“Kelley, how much longer do you think you’ll b-“ Karen walks into the room to her topless daughter in between a woman’s legs, her mouth on her inner thighs, her fingers still inside of her. Kelley’s eyes almost pop out of her head, as she removes herself from Hope and takes about 10 steps away from her, leaving Hope exposed.

 

Hope instantly tries to cover herself up, her skin turning red from embarrassment. “I-uh…we’re not gonna be much longer.” Kelley blurts out, her cheeks bright red, as she throws her shirt back over her head. Karen remains frozen in the doorway; her angry eyes burn through her daughter’s skull.

 

Hope found a small blanket at the bottom of the bed to cover herself with. She keeps her eyes planted to the bedding, unwilling to look up at an angry Karen, who has yet to say anything. “Get out of my house, Kelley. Bring your filth with you.” She growls out, motioning towards Hope. She storms out of the room, slamming the bedroom door behind her.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This isn't where I saw this chapter ending, but here we are!


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know. I suck. To be honest, writer's block has been killing me lately. I'm trying to work on my mental health and unfortunately this story has been placed on the back burner. I've been slowly writing more and more so hopefully I'm finding my way back on track. I do apologize, as I'm being ridiculously inconsistent. Because of that, I'm not making any set schedule for updates. Just know I'm always working on it and I'm doing my best to get updates out as fast as I can. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy!
> 
> TRIGGER WARNING: Drug use and assault in this chapter.

 

 

It’s a chilly day in Georgia. The park is mostly abandoned. Lily is making her way around the playground as fast as her small legs will take her. Hope and Kelley sit on the park bench, waiting patiently for Kyle to show up.

 

Hope sits, silently, letting her thoughts take over. She agreed to come with Kelley after everything that happened yesterday. The bartender had a hard time coming to the realization that her parents truly want nothing to do with her.

 

* * *

 

 

_Hope flinches at the loud ‘bang’ of the door slamming closed. She holds the blanket to her chest and makes eye contact with Kelley, who’s face is fully flushed. Hope blinks a couple of times, still slightly shocked at what just happened._

_Then, Kelley chuckles, earning a glare from Hope. “This isn’t fucking funny, Kelley. Your mom is gonna kill me.” She says, seriously. This only makes Kelley laugh harder. Hope stares at her for a few seconds, before cracking a smile. “I think she likes you!” Kelley says, through her laughter. Hope finally joins in on the laughter, as she slips her jeans back on._

_As they make their way back downstairs, Kelley leads them into the kitchen to say ‘goodbye’ to her parents. Both Karen and Dan are sitting at the kitchen table nursing a cup of coffee. Karen looks like she’d just seen a ghost, while Dan is glaring at the couple, clearly aware of what just occurred._

_“Just coming in to say ‘bye’.” Kelley states. She stops in the doorway between the kitchen and the living room, not wanting to get any closer than necessary. After only getting angry looks, in response, she continues. “We leave on Tuesday. Not sure if I’ll see you again.” She mentions, somewhat awkwardly._

_“Please, don’t come back, Kelley. Don’t bring her back here.” Karen motions to Hope, once again. “You’ve put us through enough. Just let us be.” She finishes, softly, as if she’s the victim. Kelley raises her eyebrows. “So you don’t want to see Lily again, either?” She asks, trying to clarify what her mother’s saying._

_“We don’t want our granddaughter to be exposed to your lifestyle. She’s only a child, Kelley. You should reconsider what you’re doing.” Dan jumps in. His voice remains eerily calm. “My lifestyle? Lily loves Hope. I love Hope. There’s no ‘reconsidering’ to be done. This is who I’m with. If you can’t accept that, then I have no reason to be here anymore.” The bartender raises her voice, a little bit, her emotion getting the better of her._

_Hope places a soft hand on Kelley’s lower back, in support. The action isn’t missed by Karen, who shoots the tall brunette a hard look. “I guess there’s nothing else to be said.” Karen states. Kelley stares at her for a few seconds, taking it all in. This is probably the last time she’ll be inside of her childhood home. She leans up and places a lingering kiss on Hope’s cheek, before looking both of her parents in the eye._

_She doesn’t give them any final words, before she takes Hope’s hand and leads her out of the house. The Uber ride back to their hotel is silent. Hope places a supporting hand on Kelley’s thigh, while Kelley simply stares out the window._

* * *

 

 

“You think he’s gonna blow her off?” Kelley asks, breaking Hope’s train of thought. The goalkeeper sighs and looks towards the parking lot to their left. Lily still doesn’t know that she’s here to meet her father. The child probably thinks she’s at the park to simply play on the playground. Hope and Kelley agreed it’s better that she isn’t told ahead of time, in case he doesn’t show up. As of now, it looks like that was the right decision.

 

“What time is it?” Hope asks, in response to Kelley’s question. “11:05.” The shorter woman answers, after looking at her phone’s lock screen. They had agreed to meet at 11:00. “It’s only 5 past. Maybe he’s running late.” The brunette tries to remain optimistic, tries to give Kyle _some_ credit.

 

Kyle shows up 10 minutes later, wearing dark blue jeans and a white t-shirt. “Sorry, had to stop and pay my buddy back.” Kelley rolls her eyes at the excuse. He saunters over to them, confidently.

 

Hope gives him a dirty look. ‘I already hate this guy.’ She thinks. “Let’s go get Lil.” Kelley states, motioning for Kyle to follow her. Hope tries to ignore the fact that Kyle is basically a dark-haired Ken doll. ‘We aren’t competing.’ She assures herself, as she watches the two make their way to the play area.

 

“Lil, come here.” Kelley calls out. The child climbs down the stairs and looks up, innocently, at the new face standing in front of her. Hope watches, from afar, as Kyle squats down to be at eye-level with Lily. “Hi, Lily. I’m Kyle.” She hears him say to the child.

 

* * *

 

 

Kyle’s first time meeting Lily went relatively well. Hope and Kelley ended up sitting on the bench, while Kyle and Lily made their way around the playground. They all (mostly Kelley and Kyle) agreed that Kyle shouldn’t tell Lily about who he really is, just yet. They figure that getting to know him a little bit better would be beneficial before she’s told that he’s her father.

 

By 2 o’clock, Kelley could tell Lily’s energy level has plummeted. She begins rubbing her eyes and glancing over at her, tiredly. “Maybe we should go get lunch?” The freckled woman calls out to Kyle. He nods, nonchalantly and holds out his hand for Lily to take.

 

Hope and Kelley stand up and Hope picks up Lily’s backpack. They all make their way to Kyle’s car, while Kyle runs across the street to an old coffee shop to use their bathroom. He had agreed to give them a ride to lunch and then back to the hotel so they didn’t have to call a taxi. Hope ignores the fact that Kyle hasn’t said one word to her since he’s arrived. She sits in the back seat with Lily, while Kelley sits up front with Kyle.

 

They barely make it out of the parking lot before Lily’s eyes droop shut. Luckily, for her, the restaurant they’re going to is about 20 minutes away so she’ll be able to take a short nap before she eats. “We’re going to Margarita’s, right?” Kelley asks, looking at Kyle from the passenger’s seat. He nods, in affirmative.

 

“Gotta get you drunk so you see what you’ve been missing.” He says to Kelley. Hope’s eyes snap up to meet Kyle’s, who’s looking at her through the rear-view mirror. Piercing blue eyes glare into each other, challengingly. Kelley just rolls her eyes at the crude remark. She decides to let it go, for now.

 

“Seriously, Kell. You know me. You know how well I’m doing. Just come back to Georgia. I miss you.” He says, too seriously. Hope scoffs and shakes her head. Kelley looks at him, eyes squinted in suspicion. They come to a stop light and Kelley reaches out. She grabs ahold of Kyle’s chin and turns his head towards her.

 

“You’re fucking high.” She states, in bewilderment, after studying his eyes for a few seconds. “No. No, I’m not. I had a beer before I got to the park. That’s it.” He immediately becomes defensive, only further proving Kelley’s suspicion. Hope simply raises her eyebrows and watches the situation play out.

 

“What did you take?” The bartender isn’t hiding her anger. “Pull over the fucking car.” She continues. Kyle simply nods his head. He doesn’t answer Kelley’s question, instead choosing to scowl as he pulls to the side of the road.

 

He and Kelley switch seats and Kelley drives them back to their hotel, not bothering with lunch. “Kelley, I’m sorry. I just needed something to take the edge off. I was nervous.” He babbles, as they pull into the parking lot. She pulls into a spot and puts the car in park, before opening the door and stepping outside.

 

She motions for Kyle to do the same. If they’re gonna have this conversation, the last thing she needs is Lily to wake up and overhear it. “You said you were clean.” She states, seriously. She looks up at him, sadly. He used to be a man she was proud to be with. Sure, they had their issues, but she loved him. She never thought he would turn to drugs.

 

“I was clean.” He puts his hands in the front pockets of his jeans. “I went to Danny’s yesterday and…he was using. I just couldn’t…” He trails off. He rocks back and forth, moving his weight from foot to foot, rocking from his toes to his heels.

 

Kelley runs her fingers through her hair and looks at the pavement, shaking her head. “You can’t see her anymore.” Kyle’s eyes widen, frantically. “You can’t take her away from me, Kelley. I haven’t even been able to tell her who I am yet. You can’t do this to me.” His voice gets louder and he rips his hands from his pockets, motioning angrily.

 

Hope watches from the car. Thankfully, Lily is still fast asleep. The goalkeeper listens to the conversation. She knows what’s going on, but she stays seated. She doesn’t want to interfere unless she has to. Something tells her that if she tries getting involved, it’ll only serve to make Kyle angrier.

 

“Get clean, Kyle. You need to take care of yourself before I’d ever let you near her. She doesn’t deserve this. Once you’re clean for at least a year and feeling stable, you can see her. Until then, you’re gonna have to accept the fact that you’re in no condition to be around her.” She’s trying to be empathetic. She’s trying to show him that she does care about him. She just can’t allow Lily to be hurt, to be around drugs.

 

“Fuck you. Fuck you, Kelley. You have no idea what it’s like. You’re sitting pretty in an apartment in Seattle, fucking your dyke of a girlfriend. I’m here living off of nothing.” He says, loudly. He starts clenching and unclenching his fists, in anger. The heroin is still flowing through his veins, only adding to his emotion.

 

Hope finally decides she needs to try and defuse the situation. It’s clear that Kyle is only getting angrier, by the second, and Hope doesn’t want it to escalate any further. The car is running, the AC blasting through the vents to assure Lily will be okay while they talk just a few feet away. Kyle’s eyes snap to hers when he hears the car door open.

 

“Get back in the fucking car. We aren’t done talking.” He spits out at her. Hope simply puts her hands up, in surrender, while walking towards them. “I just want to help.” She states, calmly. She’d be lying if she tried saying she hasn’t had experience with people who are tweaking. Hell, her dad was high on cocaine pretty much every time she saw him when she was young. She knows this is an unpredictable situation.

 

“Let’s just go up to the room.” Hope says, softly, to Kelley. She looks up at the brunette and nods. “Kelley, we aren’t done fucking talking.” He says, while stepping in between them and the car. His voice is loud and his eyes aren’t focused, as he glares at the two women in front of him.

 

Hope swallows, nervously. Kyle’s clearly too out of it to realize what he’s doing. “Why don’t we meet up for breakfast tomorrow morning, before our flight?” Hope offers. She knows Kyle doesn’t like her, but she needs to try something. She needs to figure out a way to calm him down, to peacefully get Kelley and Lily back up to their room in one piece.

 

“Shut the fuck up.” He says, nastily. His eyes are darting around them. He’s tweaking out and at this point, Hope knows there’s no way to talk her way out of this situation. “Kell, back up. I’m gonna go get Lily.” Hope whispers, so softly that Kyle can’t hear her.

 

Kelley almost protests. Almost. She wants to be the one to get Lily, to get her out of this situation. But looking at Kyle, seeing how aggressive he’s being, she knows Hope is the only one who will be able to do it.

 

So, Kelley takes a few steps back. Kyle stands in front of Lily’s door, his muscles twitching. Hope slowly walks past him and to the other side of the car. She opens the door, quietly, hoping Lily will just stay asleep through this mess.

 

“Lil, it’s just me.” She says, softly, as she reaches over to unbuckle her seatbelt. “NO! NO! NO!” Kyle yells. He grabs Hope, by the waist, and pulls her out of the car. He pushes her away, roughly, causing her to fall backwards onto the pavement. She grimaces, as she feels her elbows and her lower back scrape against the rough terrain.

 

“I told you, we aren’t done talking!” He yells, as he walks up to her, aggressively. Kelley gasps, as Kyle lands a solid punch to Hope’s nose. “Kyle, stop!” She yells. Hope brings her hands up to her face, already feeling her nose drain blood. She looks over to Kelley, who has a hand covering her mouth as she watches. She tries to speak with her eyes. _Go get her. He’s distracted. Go get her._ She thinks, hoping Kelley will get the point. Finally, it clicks and Kelley quietly walks to the car.

 

Hope had successfully unbuckled the child, so all Kelley had to do was get her out. “What do you want to talk about?” Hope looks up at Kyle and asks. He’s standing over her, looking at his fist, which is probably aching. Not that he feels the pain. He scrunches his face, before responding. “I need to see her. I need to see her from now on. She needs me.” He says, almost sadly.

 

“I know. I know you do. And you’ll see her again, Kyle. You just need to get better first.” She adds in that last part only after seeing Kelley heading to the hotel entrance, a sleeping Lily in her arms. “Shut up! Shut up, shut up!” He yells at her. At this point, people are starting to notice what’s going on.

 

People, who are making their way to their cars, stop to see what’s going on. “Calm down. Look at the attention you’re getting. Do you want someone to call the police? Do you want to go back to jail?” She asks. With people watching, she feels comfortable enough to stand up. She brings the bottom of her shirt up to wipe some of the blood off of her face.

 

“No. I just need to see my daughter.” He states, as Hope gets back on her feet. She backs away from him, a little bit. He turns his body towards his car and finally notices that Kelley is gone. His eyes widen, as he walks to the car and sees that Lily is also gone.

 

People continue to their cars, as Kyle gets distracted with looking for his daughter. Hope backs away even more. The only thing stopping her from going back to the room is Lily’s bag. It’s sitting on the floor in the backseat and the child’s favorite blanket is inside. She can’t let him leave with it.

 

“Where did they go?” He asks her, his words becoming more and more slurred as time passes by. “They had to go back to our room, Kyle. Lily needs to get some sleep.” She tries explaining. He looks down to the ground, his anger seemingly dissipating.

 

“I’m never gonna see her again?” He slurs out, sadly. Hope sighs and takes a couple steps towards him. “You just need to think about going to get help. Once you’re better, you can see her.” She tries explaining as best she can. “She needs her backpack. Can I grab it from the car?” She asks, after he doesn’t respond.

 

He simply nods his head. Hope quickly gets the bag and grabs Kelley’s cell phone, which was left in the front seat. “You probably shouldn’t drive. Do you have money for an Uber?” She asks Kyle, who’s eyes are drooping shut as he stands next to the car. He nods his head.

 

Hope takes the keys from the ignition and takes Kyle’s phone out. She opens the app and calls for a ride for Kyle. She leads him to the Uber pick-up area and waits with him until his ride got there. Once he’s finally in the backseat with his car keys and his phone, she heads back upstairs to the room.

 

She ignores the stinging pain coming from her lower back, which took the worst of the damage from the fall. Finally, she makes it upstairs and knocks on the door, as Kelley took her room key when she came up.

 

Kelley’s looking out the window, when she hears the knock on the door. She turns around and walks towards the door, walking past a sleeping Lily. “Are you okay?” She asks Hope as soon as she walks inside. She pulls the taller woman into her arms. Thankfully, Hope’s nose had stopped bleeding, leaving only dry blood on her face.

 

Hope grimaces, when Kelley wraps her arms around her back and brushes her wound, but she allows herself to be held anyway. “What happened? Are you okay?” Kelley asks, quickly. She steps back and inspects Hope for any serious injury.

 

“He was fine after you guys left. I got our stuff and put him in an Uber. He’ll be okay, for tonight, at least.” She explains. There’s no need to go into detail about it right now. All that matters is that they’re all okay and Kyle will hopefully get some much-needed help.

 

Kelley sighs, in relief. She leans up to give the taller woman a lingering kiss. “I’m sorry. I should have just listened to you.” Hope shakes her head. “You were just trying to do what you thought was right for Lil.” She brushes off the apology. Kelley shrugs, before grabbing Hope’s wrist and leading her into the bathroom.

 

“It doesn’t look broken.” She mentions, as she turns on the sink and wets a facecloth. Hope shakes her head. “It’s not broken. I would have felt it.” She states. She’s broken her nose before, so she knows what it feels like. Kelley ignores her and gently wipes the dried blood from Hope’s face.

 

* * *

 

 

Hope grimaces, as Kelley puts antibacterial cream onto her back. “I’m sorry, baby.” Kelley whispers, as she places a bandage over the open wound. She kisses the brunette on the back of the head. “All done.” Hope stands up and looks at Kelley’s work through the mirror. The scrape was bigger than she thought, but it’s nothing that can’t heal on its own.

 

“Do you want to press charges?” Kelley asks, casually. Hope shakes her head, without hesitation. “I don’t want this going public.” Kelley nods, in understanding. She knows that Hope has been doing what she can to keep herself out of the limelight.

 

The goalkeeper pulls her shirt down, before looking at her darkening nose through the mirror. “That fucker got me good.” She mentions, grimacing as she touches it. Kelley sighs and runs her fingers through her hair. The guilt of her ex-boyfriend attacking Hope is seeping through her.

 

Luckily, they arrived back at the hotel rather early, which means they have plenty of time to pack their clothes and gather everything for their flight home tomorrow. Kelley can’t help but be excited to get the hell out of Georgia and Hope definitely doesn’t disagree with the sentiment.

 

They spend their time making the most of their last night in Georgia. They order some pizza for dinner and bring Lily to the pool. When the bruising on Hope’s face becomes more visible, Hope has to tell Lily that she ‘walked into a pole’ to keep her from thinking her father is a monster.

 

In the morning, they simply get some breakfast and change into more comfortable travelling clothes, before heading to the airport. Lily can’t wait to get on another airplane, while Hope has to stick her nose in a book to try and ignore the fact that they’re miles above land. Then, they’re finally back in Seattle. ‘Finally home.’ Kelley thinks, as they walk towards baggage claim.

 

 


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Update! Next chapter will be Christmas and New Years. Comments are always appreciated. :)
> 
> Italics are set in the past.

 

 

“I like the small one!” Lily yells, pointing at the tree that’s only a couple inches taller than she is. Hope and Kelley smile at her. “We need one that’s gonna fill the living room, baby. The small one’s a little bit too small.” Kelley explains, as she walks to her daughter. Hope looks around, trying to find a tree that suits the size of Kelley’s apartment.

 

“How about this one?” Hope calls out. Lily comes running to her, before looking up at the large tree. She nods, excitedly. “Okay!” She says, happily. Hope smiles and pulls the tree off of the stand, before carrying it to the worker so he can cut the trunk.

 

“Hopey needs a tree for her house!” Lily tells her mom, while Hope is waiting for the tree to be ready.

 

So, they leave with two trees in tow. They stop first at Hope and Carli’s house to set up their medium-sized tree, before heading to Kelley’s apartment to set up the slightly larger tree they had picked out. Kelley heads upstairs, where her storage is, and Hope helps her carry down the tub of Christmas decorations.

 

“Mommy, we need music!” Lily yells out, when the couple reenter the apartment. Kelley smiles, while Hope gives her a hard look. Kelley knows just how much Hope hates Christmas music.

 

_“I love this song!” Kelley exclaims, turning up the radio in her car. Hope rolls her eyes from the passenger seat and shakes her head. She reaches out and changes the station, earning a glare from Kelley, who quickly changes the station back to the Christmas tune._

_“I’m not listening to this shit, Kell.” Hope states, simply. She changes the station, once again. “What is your issue?” Kelley asks, clearly annoyed by Hope’s mood. “I hate Christmas.” The goalkeeper mumbles. “How can you hate Christmas? It’s the happiest time of the year!” Kelley fires back._

_“It’s too fucking happy. Christmas sucked when I was a kid. We all just fucking argued all the time. Marcus poured his hot chocolate on me one year. It’s a stupid holiday.” Kelley rolls her eyes at Hope’s negativity, before changing the station back to the Christmas song._

_“Leave it.” She says, seriously, as she slaps Hope’s hands away from the radio. “Baby, all I want for Christmas is yoooooooooou” Kelley sings, purposely obnoxious. She looks at Hope, who’s looking out the window with her arms crossed._

“Stop being a Grinch.” Kelley whispers to her girlfriend, as she pecks her on the cheek. She takes out her phone and connects it to her speakers, before turning on a holiday channel on Pandora. “Come on, Hopey, you have to help us decorate the tree!” Lily grabs Hope’s hand and leads her to the large tree.

 

Hope sighs, but grabs an ornament from the tub and hangs it on the tree. She looks at Lily and Kelley who are both singing to the terrible song that’s playing. She rolls her eyes, but can’t stop the flutter in her chest at the sight. ‘Maybe it’s not so bad.’ She thinks, before grabbing another decoration to hang.

 

* * *

 

 

“Why is there a big plant in my house?” Carli says, as soon as Hope walks inside. Hope rolls her eyes. “You really think it was my idea?” She asks, dryly. Carli shrugs, as she glares at the tree that’s taunting her.

 

Carli hates Christmas just as much as Hope does. She hasn’t talked to anyone in her family in over a year. For her, Christmas is just a reminder of her tumultuous relationship with her family. It’s supposed to be all about reunions and happy family parties, but for Carli, it’s nothing but Brian and his drunk family talking about sports. That’s how it’s been for the last few years, at least.

 

“We can take it down. Lily was just really excited. I couldn’t say no.” Hope explains, as she takes off her shoes. Carli scoffs. “You really have gone soft, Solo.” She states with a grin, earning a hard glare from the goalkeeper. “You try saying no to her.” She defends herself, lamely. Carli just shakes her head and heads upstairs, not even bothering to think of a comeback to that.

 

* * *

 

 

It's the day before Christmas Eve and Hope is running around and trying to get everything done. She just found out that not only are Carli and Brian staying in Seattle for the holidays, but so are Megan and Sera, which means Hope is stuck trying to come up with some sort of organized dinner for the group of them.

 

Apparently, there’s a rare big snow storm heading their way, which means everyone is hoarding up on water and food even more than they normally would during the holidays. Carli and Brian don’t want to risk getting caught in the storm while travelling and Megan refuses to drive in anything other than sunshine, which means, everyone is staying in Seattle.

 

Normally, Carli and Brian go to Brian’s family home for the holidays and Megan heads back to California with Sera. Hope usually spends the holiday alone, drinking too much beer and watching shitty horror movies (because fuck Christmas movies). This year though, it seems that everyone decided to fuck up her plans.

 

So, she makes her way through the crowds of people in the grocery store and buys pretty much whatever she sees. Carli normally does the food shopping, so Hope doesn’t really know what she’s doing. She looks for familiar items and throws them in the cart.

 

By the time she gets home, she knows everyone is already at the house. They had all decided to make a sleepover out of it, considering the storm is supposed to hit late tonight and travelling tomorrow may not be the best idea. “Come help me, bitches.” Hope yells out, as she walks inside with plastic bags hanging from her arms.

 

Megan, Sera, Carli, and Brian file outside to grab some bags. Kelley should be there soon, as she just got off work around a half hour ago. Hope sighs, as she puts the bags on the counter, before heading to the living room. If she had to go to that zoo of a grocery store, everyone else can put the food away.

 

Hope freezes, as she steps into the living room. “It’s been years since we’ve been together during Christmas.” Judy says, smiling softly at her daughter. Hope blinks, hoping this isn’t some sort of fucked up dream. Her mom has always refused to leave Richland during the holidays, while Hope refused to spend the holidays with her fucked up family. She didn’t want to be there for the drinking, the arguments, the brawls that never fail to break out. So, she stayed in her bubble in Seattle and pretended like it didn’t fucking hurt to not see her Mother during the holidays.

 

She takes a few, long, strides to her mother and pulls her into a tight hug. “I’m so glad you’re here.” She whispers. “Me too, baby. Me too.” Judy replies, smiling into her daughter’s shoulder. Hope pulls away, placing her hands on her mom’s shoulders. “You’re really here.” She states, happily. Judy nods. “I’ll be here until the 4th.”

 

Hope faintly hears the footsteps of her friends making their way through the kitchen, but turns around when she hears the light patter that is the distinct sound of Lily’s small feet on the hardwood. “Hopey!” Lily yells, before running over and latching onto Hope’s legs.

 

Kelley shoots Hope a smile, her eyes falling on Judy for a second, before heading to the kitchen to put down her bags. Hope bends down and picks Lily up, placing her on her hip. “Lily, this is my mom. Her name’s Judy.” Hope says, softly. Judy smiles at the child, while Lily smiles shyly and buries her face in Hope’s shoulder.

 

“You being shy?” Hope asks, smiling. Lily shrugs, but doesn’t lift her face. The goalkeeper gives her mom a knowing look, before bringing her free hand up to tickle Lily’s stomach. The child giggles and tries to push Hope’s hand away. “Hopey!” She yells through her laughter. Kelley walks into the living room and rolls her eyes at the scene in front of her, lovingly.

 

She smiles at Judy and reaches a hand out. “Hi, I’m Kelley.” She says, politely. Judy shakes her hand and gives her a nod. “Judy.” She states, simply. Kelley looks at Hope, but doesn’t miss the way Judy eyes her, suspiciously. Kelley watches, as Hope whispers something in Lily’s ear.

 

Whatever she says does the trick because Lily scrambles out of Hope’s grip and walks two short steps to Judy. “I’m Lily.” She says, smiling sweetly. She doesn’t wait for Judy to respond, before hugging the older woman’s legs. Judy laughs and shoots Hope a loving smile, before leaning down to hug the child back. “I’m Judy.” She says, kindly.

 

“Solo, what the fuck did you buy food for? A frat party? Jesus, I’ve never seen so many sugary foods in one house.” Pinoe exclaims, as she walks into the living room. Kelley shoots her a glare for the language. “Shit, Sorry-Uh, I mean shoot. Shoot, sorry.” Pinoe corrects, grimacing. “Jude is getting drunk with us tonight, aren’t you, Jude?” She asks, the older woman.

 

Hope rolls her eyes at Pinoe, while Lily makes her way to the couch and jumps up to sit down. Judy laughs. “I’m too old for that, Meg. I told you that already.” Pinoe scoffs at Judy’s excuse. “You don’t look a day over thirty, Jude. I’d still fu-“ Hope cuts in. “Pinoe.” She warns her. The blonde laughs at Hope’s lame cut in. She puts her hands up in mock surrender.

 

“Okay, okay. I’m done.” She laughs out. Sera finally comes in, clearly having overheard the interaction. She smacks Pinoe lightly in the arm, but gives her a loving smile to counteract the action. They order pizza for dinner and sit together in the living room to watch Elf, to Hope’s dismay.

 

But Hope, Kelley and Lily sit together on the couch, Kelley’s head resting on Hope’s chest, while Lily lays across their laps, sleeping soundly. Sera sits next to Kelley, while Pinoe sits on the floor in front of her, leaning back into Sera’s legs. Carli and Brian share the large sofa-chair and Judy sits on a dining room chair that they pulled in for her.

 

When the movie ends, Kelley silently stands up, picking Lily up as she does. She carries her upstairs to put her in bed, while the rest of the group argues over which movie they’re watching next. Kelley walks back into the room and plops down next to Hope, who wraps an arm around her.

 

Eventually, the arguing turns into an actual conversation and the movie is long forgotten. “So, Kelley, you’re a bartender?” Judy asks the freckled woman, who’s nursing her fourth beer of the night. She nods, as she takes a sip from the bottle. “Not the dream-job, but it pays the bills well enough.” She shrugs, giving Judy a small smile.

 

Kelley hadn’t expected to meet Hope’s mom, just yet. Apparently, when Carli and Pinoe promised Judy not to tell anyone she’d be coming for Christmas, they meant it. “Well, as long as that beautiful girl is taken care of.” Judy smiles, motioning upstairs, where Lily is sleeping.

 

Kelley nods, in agreement. “Jude, you should see your daughter around that kid. She’s a big ball of mush.” Pinoe butts in, giving Hope an amused smile. Hope glares at her. Judy laughs and looks over at her daughter. “Hope has always been a ball of mush. She’s just a little hardheaded sometimes.” Judy jokes back.

 

After a few more drinks and drunken conversation, everyone heads upstairs to go to sleep. Pinoe and Sera take the pull-out couch, while Judy takes the guest room. Kelley and Lily stay in Hope’s room and Brian stays in Carli’s.

 

* * *

 

 

Christmas eve goes by in the blink of an eye. Hope was busy making the food, while Kelley chased Lily around the house, as the child was on a sugar high from all the candy Pinoe gave her for breakfast. Carli and Brian put all of the presents under the tree and Judy did her best to help Hope with playing hostess.

 

The night of Christmas Eve came and Lily was sleeping by 9:30. Everyone called it an early night, knowing they were gonna be woken up by an excited four-year-old at the crack ass of dawn. Hope and Kelley cleaned up the kitchen and then went to Hope’s room to make sure Lily was actually sleeping. When they were sure they were in the clear, they headed outside to Hope’s SUV, where the presents from ‘Santa’ were hidden.

 

They quietly brought them all inside and put them under the tree, while Pinoe and Sera sat back and enjoyed the milk and cookies that Lily had put out for Santa. When Hope brought in the final box, they took a step back and surveyed their work. “We should work at the fucking North Pole.” Kelley states, confidently. Hope rolls her eyes, but pulls Kelley into a hug.

 

“Merry Christmas, baby.” Hope whispers, as she pulls back. Kelley looks at the clock and sees it’s just past midnight. “Merry Christmas.” They shorter woman says back, with a smile. She leans up and places a lingering kiss on Hope’s lips.

 

Pinoe clears her throat dramatically, when the kiss goes from innocent to dirty. Hope pulls away and shoots her a glare. “Do you mind?” The goalkeeper asks, clearly annoyed at being interrupted. “You’re making us sleep on this lumpy ass couch-mattress. The least you can do is not fuck in front of us.” Pinoe fires back.

 

Hope rolls her eyes, but pulls Kelley behind her and leads her upstairs. They haven’t had a night alone for weeks, which means they haven’t had time to be ‘alone’ together, if you know what I mean. Hope is frustrated. She loves Lily, she does, but the lack of intimacy between her and Kelley is killing her.

 

So, they head back to Hope’s room, silently, and change into their pajamas before getting on opposite sides of the bed, leaving Lily sleeping in between them. Hope checks her phone before she goes to sleep to find a picture of her and Kelley kissing in front of the lit Christmas tree from Megan. ‘So, Pinoe is good for something.’ She thinks, before forwarding the picture to Kelley, who’s already fallen asleep.

 

 


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry

 

 

Hope is woken up by nothing other than Lily trying to sneak her way out of bed. “Lil, what are you doing?” Hope asks, quietly, into the darkness. “I need to see if Santa came or not.”

 

Hope smiles into her pillow, before begrudgingly sitting up in bed. She looks at the alarm clock, which glares back at her with a bright ‘6:03’. “We can’t go downstairs without your mom.” Hope whispers. She looks at her sleeping girlfriend and _almost_ feels guilty for what’s about to happen. _Almost._

 

“Mommy!” Lily whisper-yells. She hops onto Kelley’s sleeping figure and bounces on top of her. “Mmmmphhhhh” Kelley groans out.

 

“Mom, it’s Christmas! You gotta get up.” Lily states, loudly. Hope pulls herself out of bed and heads into her ensuite to brush her teeth. By the time she gets back into the bedroom, Kelley is awake and Lily is waiting, impatiently, by the door. “Mom, go brush your teeth, we gotta go open presents!” She whines.

 

Eventually, the three make it downstairs, followed by Judy, who was woken up during the chaos of Lily waking everyone up. “I’ll meet you guys in there.” Hope whispers, before heading to the kitchen to start a pot of coffee.

 

Hope walks into the living room to find Kelley sitting on the floor next to the tree, which is lit with the lights shining through the darkness of the early morning. Lily is holding a wrapped present in her lap, waiting impatiently for Hope to come into the room so she can rip the present open. Judy is sitting on a chair, dozing off, while Pinoe and Sera are laying down, tiredly watching Hope reenter the room.

 

“Go ahead, Lil.” Hope says, as she walks in the room. Lily rips off the wrapping paper, while Hope hands Judy and Kelley cups of steaming coffee. Pinoe and Sera end up going upstairs and using the guest room to get a few more hours of sleep, after Judy offered it to them.

 

It only takes Lily about twenty minutes to finish ripping open all her gifts. Hope opens a couple of the toys for her, after Lily insisted on playing with them right away. So Lily sits on the floor in front of the TV with her new toys, while Kelley and Hope exchange their own gifts for each other.

 

Judy sits on the couch and watches a Christmas movie on the TV. Hope and Kelley sit cross-legged next to the Christmas tree. Hope hands Kelley a rectangular box, wrapped poorly. “Wow, did you wrap this yourself?” Kelley asks, sarcastically, giving Hope a wink to let her know she’s joking. Hope rolls her eyes, but nods. Kelley takes off the wrapping paper to see a sparking silver bracelet. Her eyes widen, as she looks at the diamonds shining back at her.

 

“This is too much.” She whispers, looking up at Hope, who smiles. “It’s not.” She replies. Kelley carefully takes the bracelet out of the box. She holds it up to the Christmas lights to see it sparkle, before holding it out to Hope. “Help me put it on?” She asks.

 

Hope clips the bracelet on Kelley’s wrist, before the shorter woman crawls the short distance to her girlfriend. “You didn’t have to spend so much.” She says, softly. Hope shrugs. “Do you like it?” Kelley nods, enthusiastically, before grabbing Hope’s chin and pulling her into a loving kiss.

 

Kelley pulls back and gets suddenly nervous. She was convinced she had the perfect gift for Hope. She didn’t have much money to spend after buying Lily all her presents, but she didn’t think it would matter, until now. She sighs, as she picks up a small square box.

 

“It’s nothing fancy, but I want you to have it.” She whispers, nervously, as she holds the present out to Hope. The goalkeeper smiles at Kelley, trying to reassure her. She carefully opens the unwrapped box and her face drops at what’s inside.

 

“Is this….?” She trails off, looking at Kelley for help. The bartender nods, trying to read her girlfriends reaction. Hope lets out a deep breath and smiles brightly at Kelley.  “You’re sure?” She asks. Kelley nods. “Of course I’m sure.”

 

Hope takes the key out of the box and clenches it, tightly, in her palm. “This is perfect. Thank you.” Hope whispers, leaning over to give Kelley a kiss. Hope pulls back and looks down at the small silver key. It may not be what Hope was expecting, but the gesture means more than she can explain.

 

“It’s just so you don’t have to wait out in the cold for me to let you in when you come over.” Kelley explains, looking at the key that Hope is playing with. “It’s perfect, Kell.” Hope reassures, once again. Lily bounces up to them, needing help opening one of her toys.

 

* * *

 

 

“Go. I won’t take ‘no’ for an answer.” Judy states, once again, as she all but pushes Hope and Kelley out the door. It’s New Year’s Eve and Judy insisted that she watch Lily while Hope and Kelley go out with their friends. “Solo, get your ass out here, it’s already 10.” Pinoe calls from inside the taxi. Hope rolls her eyes, but leads Kelley outside and into the car.

 

The six of them arrive at the club just after 10:30, leaving them with a good amount of time to get a buzz going before the ball drops. The club is absolutely packed with people of all ages. Hope leads the group to a secluded table in the back corner of the club, where everyone drops their jackets and sits down.

 

They start out slow, having a drink each, but before long, Pinoe has them all on the dance floor making fools of themselves. The dance floor is flooded with people, everyone back to back, front to front, celebrating the start of a new year. Kelley’s alcohol tolerance level is well below the rest of the group’s, so she’s feeling the effect of the drinks more-so than the rest of them.

 

“Let’s go take a shot.” Hope states, in Kelley’s ear over the sound of the music. The DJ is pumping the crowd with upbeat dance music and everyone seems to be enjoying it. Kelley follows closely behind Hope and downs a shot of tequila with her. “I’m gonna go check on Car.” Hope mentions. Kelley nods, easily. “I’ll meet you on the dance floor.” She winks at Hope.

 

Hope finds Carli and Brian whispering to each other back at the table. “Where’s Pinoe?” Hope asks, loudly, over the music. Carli looks up at her and nods her head in the direction of Pinoe, who’s dancing with Sera and a group of women who look to be laughing at something she had said.

 

Hope takes a swig of the beer that she had left at the table with Carli, before heading back out to find Kelley. She walks towards the bar, where she last saw her, but her girlfriend is nowhere in sight. She’s immediately concerned, frantically darting her eyes from face to face on the dance floor, trying to find the one she’s looking for.

 

Eventually she finds her. Deep into the large dance floor, she finally lays her eyes on Kelley, who’s ass is pressed up against a tall man’s crotch. Hope freezes, her eyes trailing up Kelley’s body, to the man’s hands, which are running over Kelley’s hips. Kelley’s eyes lock on Hope’s and the shorter woman smirks at the goalkeeper, only making Hope’s blood pump even more.

 

Kelley turns her body so she’s facing the man, who’s greasy blond hair is wet with sweat. She dances in front of him, allowing him to trail his hands along her legs, and then to her ass. Hope seethes. She stands, frozen, in the middle of the dance floor, trying to reign herself in before she makes a bad decision and knocks this creep’s lights out.

 

Kelley turns around so she’s facing Hope, again. Hope looks at her and shakes her head, her eyes burning holes into her. Kelley smirks, once again, and places her hands over the man’s, bringing them to rest on her lower stomach. Hope turns away and starts to storm off the dance floor entirely, but she’s stopped by Kelley’s hand on her wrist.

 

Hope turns around to throw scathing words in her girlfriend’s direction, but she’s met with a heated kiss. Nothing but a clash of teeth and tongues and fighting for dominance. Hope bites Kelley’s lip, roughly, winning the battle, before pulling away, abruptly. “Fuck you.” She spits out, trying to walk away again.

 

Kelley grabs her arm and drags her back to the middle of the dance floor. The man that Kelley was dancing with approaches them, earning a scathing glare from Hope. “What is this? A two-for-one deal?” He asks, smirking, as he looks them both up and down. Kelley rolls her eyes.

 

“You fucking wish.” Kelley snarks back, easily. She has enough experience with drunk men to know that this one is harmless. Just an asshole who thinks he’s getting some tonight. He tilts his head, before looking at Hope. “Come on, baby. Give me a dance.” He flirts, reaching his hand out for Hope to take.

 

Hope smacks it away from her and shoots Kelley a glare for putting them into this situation. “Woah, woah, baby, come on. Don’t be like that…” He trails off, giving her a smirk. Kelley steps in front of Hope, who’s silently seething. “Thanks, for the dance, but we’re together.” She states, motioning between her and Hope.

 

Kelley doesn’t give the man a chance to respond, before she grabs Hope’s wrist and leads her away from him. Once they’re off the dance floor, Hope rips her arm from her girlfriend’s grasp. “What the fuck was that?” Hope asks, angrily. Kelley sighs and leads Hope to a secluded corner of the club, where they can talk in privacy.

 

“It was just a dance, babe. I was just having fun. He’s harmless.” She explains. Hope looks at her with hard eyes. “Just a fucking dance? You let everyone run their fucking hands all over you?” She asks, backing Kelley into the wall. The shorter woman shakes her head.

 

“N-No, I just…I was having fun.” She replies, quietly. She feels her back hit the wall and she looks up at Hope, who’s looking at her with heated eyes. She feels warmth spread through her face. “You like his hands more than mine?” Hope rasps, lowly, into her ear. Kelley gasps, at the feeling of Hope’s breath against her neck.

 

She feels her girlfriend’s fingers softly running under her shirt, trailing up and down her stomach. “No.” Kelley breathes out. She closes her eyes, as Hope’s lips press against her neck, sweetly, before she feels teeth sink into her skin. She moans, and feels heat make its way to her core.

 

They faintly hear the countdown begin in the background. Hope pulls away from a heated kiss and rests her forehead against Kelley’s just as the countdown reaches ‘one’. “Happy New Year, Kell.” She says, leaning in so Kelley can hear her.

 

The bartender smiles and leans in to peck Hope on the lips. “Happy New Year.” She whispers, as she pulls away slightly. Hope doesn’t waste any time before capturing Kelley’s lips in a passionate kiss. She runs her tongue along the roof of Kelley’s mouth, earning a moan. Kelley pulls her lips from Hope’s and kisses her way along Hope’s jawline to her ear.

 

“Let’s get a room.” Kelley whispers, seductively, in Hope’s ear. Hope shudders at the feeling of Kelley’s breath on her skin. She nods, shakily. Kelley doesn’t miss a beat, before grabbing Hope’s elbow and leading her back to the table. “We’re getting a room. We’ll see you at Hope’s tomorrow morning.” Kelley states to Carli and Brian, who nod. “Be safe!” Carli calls after them.

 

Hope sends her mom a text to let her know they wouldn’t be home tonight. They ride in the back of the taxi, in silence. Hope runs her hand up and down Kelley’s leg, allowing them to trail under her dress. Kelley lets out a shaky breath and just as Hope reaches her center, they pull up to the front of the hotel.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure I like how I ended this but I really wanted to get something out for you guys.


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have depression pls don't hate me
> 
>  
> 
> There's very little Lily in this chapter. Next chapter will make up for it.
> 
> Also, I love Ali, but in this fic, she's a lil problematic. So there's that.

It’s the day before the team arrives and Hope is working around the house, trying to get it clean for the team party. They decided that starting camp with a party would bond them together and make the entirety of camp a much better experience.

 

 

Hope is just finishing up on the kitchen, when there’s a knock at the door. She immediately finds it strange, as Kelley’s been at work all day and she’s not sure who else would come to her house. When she opens it and sees deep brown eyes looking back at her, her heart plummets to her stomach. “Ali.” She breathes out.

 

“Hey.” Ali replies, smiling brightly at the goalkeeper. Hope opens the door for her, letting her come inside. “I thought you were all flying in tomorrow.” Hope mentions, leading them to the kitchen. “Do you want a drink? Water? Anything?” She rambles on. She’s already feeling the nervous energy emerging from her body.

 

Ali shakes her head. “No, thanks. I got an earlier flight than the rest of the team. Wanted to be able to talk to you before the mob comes through.” She states, following Hope into the living room and taking a seat next to her on the couch. They fall into an awkward silence.

 

Hope takes a sip from her water bottle, looking at Ali expectantly. “Ash and I broke up.” She states, turning her body towards Hope, who raises her eyebrows at the confession. “Okay?” She says, questioningly. “I’m so sorry for everything, Hope. You didn’t deserve that.”

 

Hope sighs and runs her fingers through her hair. “There’s nothing to apologize for, Al. I’m over it.” Ali moves so she’s right next to Hope. She cups her face in her hands, rubbing it with her thumb. “I miss you.” She states. Hope pulls away from the touch like it burns her. She simply shakes her head at the defender.

 

“Don’t. Don’t touch me.” Hope says, seriously. She stands up and moves to the chair next to the couch, trying to put space between her and Ali. Ali sighs, watching as Hope moves.

 

She looks at the uncomfortable goalkeeper, before standing up and kneeling in front of her. She leans in and places a peck on Hope’s cheek. She keeps her lips against the skin, lingering there for a few seconds, before kissing her again. She plants a few more kisses on the goalkeeper’s cheek, before working her way down the keeper’s neck. The kisses turn open-mouthed, landing on her pulse point, before sucking on the skin, roughly.

 

Hope remained frozen, completely put off by the forwardness. “Ali, stop.” She states, pushing her away. “I have a girlfriend.” She finally says. Ali falters, a little bit, at the proclamation. The last she’d heard about Hope was that she was in a pool of her own pity after everything happened between them.

 

“She’s not me.” Ali whispers, looking in Hope’s eyes. “She’s better than you.” Hope says, simply. Ali furrows her eyebrows. “Fuck you, Hope.” She snarls. Hope stands up, shaking her head. “Just leave it, Al. Nothing is gonna come of this, of us. I’m happy. I’ve moved on.”

 

“Does she fuck you like I do?” She stands up and approaches Hope, who’s lingering at the doorway. “Better.” Hope answers, simply. Ali shakes her head. She and Hope’s sex life had been explosive. Their personalities clashed in a way that they never had issues working out arguments in the bedroom.

 

“Who is she?” She finally asks. In her mind, she still has Hope wrapped around her finger. Hope leans back against the doorway, Ali standing in front of her. “Her name’s Kelley. She has a daughter named Lily. I love them.” The keeper explains, easily. Ali bites her lips to keep herself from laughing. ‘There’s no way Hope is taking care of a kid.’ She thinks.

 

“What’s funny?” Hope asks, when she sees Ali holding in her laughter. “Hope, you can’t take care of a baby.” She states. “It’s never gonna work out. I mean, you couldn’t even keep me around, let alone a woman with a baby. She’ll be running before you know it.”

 

Hope looks down. Ali knows how to push her buttons. She knows her insecurities and has no problem airing them out. “She’s not a baby. She’s almost 5.” Hope corrects. Ali rolls her eyes. “Hope, you’re an idiot if you think you’re gonna have a family and live happily ever after with this girl. You know I’m right.”

 

Hope shakes her head. “You’re wrong. You don’t know her and you sure as hell don’t know me anymore so stop acting like you’re above me.” She growls out. Ali doesn’t get to walk in here and tell her what her relationship with Kelley is like. “I left you for Ash because unlike you, she has standards. Once your ‘girlfriend’ sees how fucked up you are, she’ll be gone too.”

 

“Fuck you, Ali. You’re a cheater. That’s all you’ll ever be.” Hope growls out. She hears the slap before she feels it. She cups her cheek in her hand, glaring down at Ali, who still has her hand up, ready to slap her again. “Relax. Don’t fucking hit me again.” Hope says, seriously.

 

She puts her arms out in front of her, pushing Ali away, softly. Ali gives her two more hard slaps with her right hand, before Hope gets a hold on her and pins her to the wall behind her. “Fucking stop! What is your problem?” Hope yells, angrily. Her cheek is burning and hot from the impact of Ali’s palm.

 

She has Ali’s wrists in her hands, pinned back against the wall. “I always loved it when you took control.” Ali flirts, looking up at Hope through her dark lashes. Hope presses Ali’s wrists into the wall, before letting go completely. “Leave. Don’t come back here until the party.”

 

Hope walks away, hoping that Ali will just leave. She walks upstairs towards her bedroom. She finally hears the front door open and close and she feels safe. Her first thought is Kelley. She immediately picks up her cell phone and goes to Kelley’s contact. “Hey. I just clocked out.” Kelley answers. Hope can hear the smile in her voice.

 

Kelley’s excitement only serves to make Hope more upset. “I just kicked Ali out of my house.” She states. The bartender can hear how shaken up her girlfriend is. “I’m on my way.” Kelley states, before hanging up. She wants to get to Hope as quickly as she can and she refuses to talk on the phone while she’s driving.

 

Kelley quickly walks upstairs, after not finding Hope anywhere on the first floor of the small house. “Hope?” She calls out, as she walks up the staircase. “In my room.” Hope calls back. Kelley walks in to find Hope inspecting her face. “What happened?”

 

“She fucking hit me. She slapped me.” Hope states, turning around to look at Kelley, who looks perplexed. “I don’t even know what happened. She came inside and just started talking about you and Lily like she knows you. She just…” She trails off, shaking her head. She explains what happened, watching Kelley’s face turn to anger when she learns that Ali tried kissing her.

 

When Hope tells her what Ali said about their relationship, Kelley sighs and approaches Hope, taking her face in her hands. She runs her thumb over her red cheek. “She doesn’t know anything, babe.” Kelley says, softly. “If she puts her fucking hands on you again, she’ll sure as hell know who I am.” The shorter woman continues, angrily.

 

Hope smiles and kisses Kelley on the forehead. “It’s fine. I don’t want you getting in the middle of it.” Hope says, softly. The last thing she wants is for Kelley to get stuck in the crossfire of this shit show.

 

* * *

 

 

The team arrived to the party in groups. Luckily, for Hope, Ali was one of the last people to arrive so she didn’t feel obligated to greet her. She played hostess with Carli and Pinoe, offering drinks, getting the snacks out, and figuring out how many pizzas they’d need (They have a pact of silence so Dawn doesn’t run them into the ground at training).

 

Lily walks around the party as if she’s the guest of honor. She took a liking to Moe and Emily and ended up playing a game with them. She leads them around the house, proudly showing them the butterfly that Hope still has displayed in the kitchen. Kelley stuck by Hope’s side, helping with whatever she can. It wasn’t until she was walking back into the kitchen, after dropping off a bowl of chips in the living room, that she ran into Ali. Literally.

 

She was just turning the corner, when she felt a body collide with her own. “Fuck.” Kelley grunts out, before looking up to see Ali looking back at her, amusedly. “I’m Ali.” She states, too-sweetly. “Kelley.” The bartender responds. “I know who you are and I feel sorry for you. That one could never settle down.” Ali says, nonchalantly, motioning to the kitchen.

 

Kelley rolls her eyes. “Maybe you weren’t good enough to settle down for.” She states. “And don’t ever put your fucking hands on her again.” She growls, before pushing past the defender and walking back into the kitchen, where Hope has just cracked open her first beer. “How you holding up?” The shorter woman asks, as she approaches her from behind. Hope turns around, relieved to see Kelley.

 

“I’m fine. Just want to get this over with.” Kelley nods, in understanding. She leads Hope into the living room, where Moe and Sonnet are having an animated conversation with Lily while most of the team listens in.

 

Hope leans on the doorframe and watching the team interact with Lily. They’re all smiling and laughing along with her, trying to get to know her as best they can. Hope appreciates their effort.

 

Ash approaches her after a couple minutes and asks if they can talk. Hope sighs, knowing this must be done, and follows her into the empty kitchen. “Look, there’s no hard feelings, or whatever.” Hope says, trying to start the conversation.

 

Ash sighs and shakes her head. “I need to apologize. I was an asshole. I knew you and Al were together and I guess I just didn’t care, at the time. I was a shitty friend.” She says, looking at the brunette. Hope sighs and shrugs her shoulders.

 

“I’m not worried about it anymore. I’ve moved on. If you think we’re gonna be back to the way we were before, you’re wrong. But I’m also not gonna dwell on it.” She explains. Ash hurt her just as much as Ali did when everything happened. She considered Ash one of her closest friends so for her to betray her like she did broke the trust Hope had in her.

 

Ash sighs. She figured she wouldn’t be completely forgiven, but she was hopeful. “Kelley seems great.” She mentions, changing the subject. Hope smiles at the thought of her girlfriend. “She’s the best.” The brunette shrugs, easily.

 

They make small talk for a few minutes, before heading back in the living room with the team. They all joke around and get to know the players they haven’t had a chance to talk to yet. Within a few hours, Lily starts dozing off, so Kelley brings her upstairs to sleep in Hope’s room.

 

When she gets back downstairs, the team had started playing truth or dare, a game that was suggested by Mal, apparently. She plops down next to Hope on the floor and listens to the dare Pinoe blurts out.

 

“Hope truth or dare? You’re out of drinks, so you have to do whatever it is I say.” Kelley states, mischievously. They’ve been around the circle a few times now and Hope has used up her 3 drinks, which she took when she was given dares she didn’t want to do or truths she didn’t want to answer.

 

Hope looks at her girlfriend with challenging eyes. “Truth.” Kelley smirks and pecks her on the cheek. “Who’s the love of your life?” She asks. She knows it’s petty, asking this question in front of Ali. But after everything the defender put her girlfriend through, she can’t seem to find a reason to care.

 

“You, obviously.” Hope answers, easily. Kelley smiles and sends a glance towards Ali, who’s looking down at her phone, pretending that she didn’t hear. The game continues, without a hitch.

 

 “Kelley, truth or dare?” Ali asks, smirking at the freckled woman, when it gets to her turn. Kelley doesn’t back down. She hasn’t forgotten about finding her girlfriend with a handprint on her face yesterday and wants to make sure Ali knows her place.

 

“Dare.” She answers, confidently. Ali’s eyes light up, clearly getting the response she was hoping for from Kelley. “I dare you to make out with Ash.” Hope’s stomach drops and she sends a scathing glare towards her ex-girlfriend.

 

“Cheers.” Kelley says, simply, lifting her bottle of beer to the group, before taking a long sip. She leans back into Hope, turning her head to plant a kiss on her cheek. Hope gives her an appreciative smile. Ali knows what that would have done to their relationship and Hope hates her for stooping down to that level.

 

“I’m going to grab another.” Hope announces to the group, lifting her empty beer bottle, before standing. Kelley sits up and watches Hope walk out of the room. Ali takes this as her opportunity, so she quickly follows the tall goalkeeper. Kelley watches them leave, hoping Ali would finally give Hope the apology she deserves.

 

Ali approaches Hope from behind, as the woman reaches into the fridge. “Hey.” Ali says, softly. Hope jumps, at the unexpected voice. She grabs her beer, before turning around to see Ali. “Hi.” She responds, simply. She reaches to the back of the counter to grab a bottle opener.

 

She turns back around to feel Ali’s lips firmly press against hers. She lifts her arms out to the side, showing she wasn’t partaking in the unexpected action. She refuses to kiss the shorter woman back, but with Ali’s hands firmly cupping the back of Hope’s neck, she couldn’t retreat from the grasp.

 

Hope tries to cry out, but the sound is drowned out by Ali’s mouth. The defender pries Hope’s lips open with her tongue, assaulting her mouth thoroughly. The keeper struggles to get free from Ali’s grip, to no success. Finally, Carli walks into the kitchen to see what was taking them so long. “What the fuck?” She says, loudly enough to get the attention from her teammates, who rush in after Carli.

 

The midfielder tears Ali back and away from her best friend, who’s chest is heaving, as she leans back against the counter. Carli drags Ali outside to get her away from everyone. Hope locks eyes with Kelley, who looks back at her with wide eyes. “I didn’t-Kelley, I didn’t…” She trails off, as Kelley approaches her.

 

She cups Hope’s face, while the team watches on, in shock. The bartender leans up and places a kiss on her forehead, before walking towards the front door like a woman on a mission. Hope leans back against the counter and lets out a shaky breath.

 

“You okay?” JJ asks, softly. Hope shakes her head, before walking away from the team and following her girlfriend outside. She finds Carli holding back Kelley, who’s yelling obscenities at Ali. Ali is trying to go after Kelley, but is being held off by Ash.

 

“You put your fucking hands on her again and see what happens!” Kelley says, loudly, fighting against Carli’s strong grip. Ali pushes Ashlyn away from her, but doesn’t go after Kelley. “She kissed me.” Ali states, nastily.

 

Kelley stops fighting and Hope looks at her, nervous that her girlfriend will believe what she’d said. “Fuck you.” Kelley states, simply. She looks at Ali, angrily, before pushing Carli away from her. She walks up to Hope and grabs her face, pulling her into a loving kiss.

 

Hope sighs into the kiss, relieved that Kelley didn’t fall into the trap. Kelley pulls away, before dragging Hope into the house without sparing Ali another glance.

 

Kelley leads her girlfriend into the living room, gently pushing her down on the couch. The team lingers awkwardly in the kitchen and living room areas, unsure of whether they should stay or go. Hope looks up at Kelley, who’s looking out the large bay window to see what’s going on outside.

 

The bartender must see something she doesn’t like because Hope watches her quickly walk out of the living room and out of the house. Hope stands up and looks out the window to see Ash standing between Carli and Ali, who are yelling at each other. Hope’s seen this look in Carli’s eye once before and it ended in the other person getting a broken nose.

 

Hope rolls her eyes, before following Kelley outside. Kelley’s trying desperately to pull Carli away from Ali, but the midfielder isn’t budging. “You fucking broke her. You broke her and you have the guts to come here and try to ruin her again? What kind of monster are you?” Hope hears Carli spit out at Ali.

 

The goalkeeper quickly makes her way to Kelley’s side. She stands in front of Carli and wraps her arms around her, while Ash drags Ali away from the confrontation by her elbow. “Calm down. You aren’t helping. The neighbors are gonna call the cops.” Hope states, seriously in her best friend’s ear, while Kelley shoots daggers in Ali’s direction.

 

Carli relaxes in Hope’s grip and the goalkeeper feels her nod, before taking a step backwards. “Go inside.” Hope says to her girlfriend and her best friend. They look at her, skeptically, but Hope shoots them a hard look. They reluctantly head inside, while Hope walks over to Ash and Ali.

 

Ash is desperately trying to calm the defender down, when Hope approaches them. “I don’t know if you have any stuff inside, but I’d like for you to leave.” The tall brunette says, softly. She’s done arguing. She’s done entertaining the defender. She just wants her gone. She wants to spend what’s left of the night with the teammates that have her back.

 

“I’m sorry.” Ali looks up at Hope, with genuinely apologetic eyes. “I just thought…I thought-“ She cuts herself off, before taking a steadying breath. “I thought maybe if we kissed, you’d feel what we had. I thought I could convince you that we’re worth fighting for.”

 

Ash looks on, awkwardly, but stays just in case something goes down again. Hope shakes her head. “There’s nothing left to save, Ali. We were done the second you and Ash hooked up. There’s nothing here for you anymore.” Hope explains, softly. She doesn’t want to hurt her ex-girlfriend. That’s not her goal, but she has to make her realize that she’s happy now, with Kelley.

 

“I know that now. I’m sorry. I ruined the night for you. I ruined a lot of things.” The defender says, softly. She looks down and shakes her head at herself. Hope sighs and runs a hand through her hair. “I’m happy now, Al. I’m so fucking happy. I just want you to be happy for me. I want you to find what I found. I just can’t have you coming in here and trying to ruin it for me. You’re better than that.”

 

Ali nods and looks at Hope. She gives her a small smile. “I’m glad you found Kelley. I think you needed her, you needed her and Lily. I am happy for you, Hope. You do deserve the best. You’re too good for me, but Kelley is perfect for you. She loves you, you know.” Hope smiles, thinking about her little family.

 

“I know she does.” Hope whispers. She sighs and looks at Ali, who looks embarrassed about everything that happened tonight. She has her arms crossed in front of her and her eyes are focused somewhere beyond Hope. The goalkeeper reaches out and grabs Ali’s forearm, pulling her into a hug.

 

“I forgive you, you know.” She says. She feels Ali uncross her arms and wrap her arms loosely around Hope’s waist. “Don’t run from her.” Ali whispers, in response. “Don’t run from this one. She’s worth it.” The defender finishes. Hope closes her eyes. Ali’s could always read her almost too-well.

 

“I won’t.” Hope replies. She thinks back to the beginning of her relationship with Ali. She tried like hell to run away from her feelings for the defender. She retreated and retreated, only for the defender to follow her, persistently, until Hope finally allowed herself to feel.

 

Hope pulls away. “I have to go make sure Carli’s not throwing a tantrum. You can come in and get your stuff, but I think we should call it a night.” She says. She wouldn’t have a problem with Ali staying, but Kelley and Carli, and potentially the rest of the team, may not be apt to spending more time with the defender tonight.

 

Ali shakes her head. “I didn’t bring anything. I’ll see you at training.” Hope nods, giving Ali one last glance, before giving Ash a nod and heading back inside. She finds Kelley waiting for her, leaned up against the wall near the doorway, with Carli storming around the house, angrily cleaning up after everyone. The team is in the living room, clearly having moved on from the drama, as Hope hears them chatting and laughing away.

 

Hope walks up to Kelley and pulls her into a hug. “I love you.” Hope says, softly. Kelley firmly wraps her arms around Hope’s waist. “I love you too.” She says into her shoulder. Their moment is broken, when Carli slams the refrigerator door closed. “Who ate all the fucking dip?” She yells, earning a few mumbled excuses from the team.

 

Hope rolls her eyes and pulls away from her girlfriend. “I guess we should go entertain.” Kelley sighs, but nods, in agreement. “We’ll talk tomorrow.” The shorter woman says. Hope agrees and the two make their way into the living room, where the team is being scolded about eating all the fucking dip. “Car, relax. It’s just dip. I’ll buy you more tomorrow.” Hope says, softly.

 

Carli turns around, ready to ream out whoever was questioning her, but when she sees Hope looking back at her she instantly relaxes. “I’m fine, Car. We’re good.” The goalkeeper says, reassuringly. Hope knows that Carli tends to go on blind rampages when she gets angry and just needs a reminder that everything is fine for her to calm down.

 

The midfielder nods and looks at the team, apologetically. Sonnet is the first to break the awkward silence, with an obnoxious laugh, as if she was just scolded by her teacher. The team joins in soon after and the night goes on as if nothing happened. With Ali gone, everyone seems a little more at ease. The atmosphere is less uncomfortable without the elephant in the room and they end up all sleeping on the living room floor in the early hours of the morning.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't edit the last 10% of this chapter so if you see any mistakes let me know.


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M BACK
> 
> I didn't edit the last part of this so if there's any mistakes, I'm sorry.

Kelley sighs, as she walks into her apartment. Hope has been ridiculously busy with camp. Between training, recovery, and fitness testing, she’s been booked solid and when she’s free she’s so tired she can’t do much anyway. They end up watching half of a movie on the couch, before Hope falls asleep and Kelley has to basically drag her to the bed so the couch doesn’t hurt her back.

 

Hope hasn’t had to deal with any of Ali’s drama since the party. Luckily, Ali was sincere in wishing Hope the best with her new relationship and has kept it professional during camp. She seems to have moved on for the most part and has kept with her group of friends, leaving Hope be.

 

Hope’s body is starting to feel the effect of full-team training. They’re a full month into camp, which means their game is only two days away. They leave for the Algarve in just three days, which Hope is dreading. She and Kelley have been so distant with them being in the same apartment, so the distance that’s going to come with this next camp isn’t going to help their situation.

 

Hope’s found herself completely focused on her job. It’s been difficult to spend much time with Kelley and Lily, which has placed a small strain on the relationship. Lily’s been extra fussy lately, leaving Kelley frustrated and Hope helpless.

 

The past couple of days, Hope’s been spending her nights at home with Carli. After a long day of training, the last thing she wants to do is go to Kelley’s apartment, where it will lead to nothing but an argument. Even with the frustration surrounding their relationship, Kelley’s been supportive. She’s been giving Hope her needed space, while still being sure to check in occasionally and making sure she’s okay.

 

So now, having just finished her last day of training before the friendly, Hope makes her way upstairs to Kelley’s. She lets herself inside and drops her bag on the floor before finding Kelley in the living room. Lily’s at school, which gives Hope and Kelley much needed alone time.

 

“Hey.” Hope says, softly, as she plops herself down. “Hey.” The shorter woman responds. She readjusts herself on the couch so she’s sitting cross-legged against the arm. Hope looks at her, apologetically. She knows she’s mostly to blame for the strain that’s been placed on them. She’s done a shitty job of communicating and she hasn’t done enough to help Kelley with Lily.

 

“Is this how it’s gonna be every camp?” Kelley asks. She’s almost nervous to hear the answer. She didn’t expect it to be like this. She expected it to be the same as it was before camp, where Hope just went to training and came home, ready to help Kelley parent. Instead, she’s turned back into a single mother with no one to help her.

 

“No, it’s not…I’m sorry.” Hope answers, quietly. Kelley sighs, but doesn’t give her a verbal response. Hope looks at the TV, while Kelley looks at her girlfriend expectantly. “I’ve never had someone who doesn’t play soccer. I guess I’m just not used to it. I’m sorry. I know I need to work on it.” Hope states. She’s not sure why she’s allowed herself to put so much distance between her and Kelley, but she knows it was her doing.

 

Again, Kelley doesn’t respond, but she places a hand on Hope’s thigh. She gets it, she truly does. Hope has never been in a true relationship with someone outside of the soccer world, let alone a relationship where a child is involved. “You guys are coming to the match, right?” Hope asks, hopefully. Kelley had told her they’d be there, but that was at the beginning of camp, before everything got messy.

 

Kelley rolls her eyes. “Obviously.” She states, grasping Hope’s leg, jokingly. She sees relief fill Hope’s features. “You really think that just because it’s gotten a little bit more difficult that I’m just gonna leave?” Hope shakes her head, but it does nothing to convince Kelley.

 

“We’ll be there.” She says, firmly, before placing a kiss on Hope’s cheek. “You have to get us jerseys though.” Hope’s eyes light up, as she pictures Lily in a tiny ‘Solo’ kit. “I’ll have them waiting for you at the stadium.”

 

* * *

 

 

Hope flies through her recovery day, before making her way to Lily’s school to pick her up at 3:30. Kelley’s working the 11-7 shift at the bar today so Hope gets to spend time with Lily. She walks up to the parent waiting area and sits on a bench. She scrolls through her email, until she hears the pitter-patter of small feet on the tile.

 

“Hopey!” She hears Lily shout out. She looks up just in time to catch the pouncing child. “Hey, Lil.” Hope says, happily. “What do you say? Toy store then ice cream?” She asks, earning an excited nod in return. They make their way through the toy store for what feels like hours, where Lily could pick out exactly two toys and had trouble deciding which ones she wanted.

 

They grab some ice cream, to-go, for Lily. “Hopey, I love you.” Lily says, in between licks of her ice cream cone. Hope’s breath catches in her throat and her eyes well up on their own accord. She looks in the rear-view mirror with a smile. “I love you too, Lil.”

 

Lily just shrugs and goes back to focusing on her treat, but Hope can’t get it out of her head. This kid that she’s only truly known for about six months just told her that she loves her. No prompting, no nothing, and she said she loves her. Hope knows she must be better. She knows she’s gonna have to work harder, especially when she’s away, to communicate with Kelley. She needs to take time out of her day to talk to her, to talk to Lily. It’s time for her to step up.

 

* * *

 

 

Hope wakes up early the next day to go for a pre-match jog and get her legs moving. When she makes it back to the apartment, she finds Kelley and Lily awake and chopping fruit. Hope pecks Kelley on the lips, before making her way around them to grab what she needs for her own breakfast.

 

They eat in the living room so Lily could watch her cartoons. Once 11 o’clock hits, Hope starts gathering her stuff to head to the stadium. “Okay, I have to go.” Hope states, as she slides sneakers onto her feet.  Lily pops onto her feet and runs to Hope, grabbing onto her thighs. “Please don’t go.” She says, sadly. Kelley rolls her eyes.

 

“Lil, don’t start right now. Hopey has to go to work, but today we get to watch. Do you want to do that? Want to watch Hopey work?” Lily’s head pops up at that and nods enthusiastically. Hope smiles and plucks Lily off the ground, placing her on her hip. “I’ll see you guys at the stadium. I’ll have someone run your jerseys out to you.

 

She leans over and kisses Kelley on the lips, before placing a kiss on Lily’s cheek. “I love you both.” She says, before placing Lily back on the ground. Lily runs off to her room to pick out an outfit to wear, while Kelley follows Hope out the door, keeping her foot wedged in so the door doesn’t close. “Good luck.” She says, softly.

 

Hope sighs, knowing the next few months weren’t gonna be any easier with the Algarve coming so soon. “Thanks, baby.” She replies. She wraps her arms around Kelley and rests her hands on the woman’s lower back.

 

“I love you.” She says, with conviction. Kelley smiles up at her and places a lingering kiss on her cheek. “I love you too. Now go kick some ass, number one, so we can celebrate after.” She finishes with a wink, which puts a smile on Hope’s face. “I will.” She states, before walking backwards down the hallway. “I gotta go. But I love you and I’ll come out to see you guys before kickoff.” Kelley smiles and nods, before turning back into the apartment.

 

“Lily, you can’t wear that.” Kelley says, chuckling slightly at the sight of her daughter in the Elsa dress that Hope bought for her a few weeks ago. Lily narrows her eyes. “Why not, mommy? I want to look pretty at Hopey’s work.” Kelley laughs. “Baby, you know Hope works at the soccer field. You don’t need to dress up. You’re gonna be wearing Hopey’s jersey once we get there.”

 

Lily’s eyes light up. “I get to wear her jersey?” She asks, excitedly. Kelley nods, smiling. “They have a miniature sized one just for you.” She says, jokingly, pulling a pout out of Lily. “I’m not miniature sized! I’m only four years old!” Lily states, before storming into her bedroom, grumbling to herself. Kelley laughs, knowing Lily would come back with an outfit just as ridiculous and she’d end up having to pick something out for her.

 

* * *

 

 

“Solo, your wife coming?” Pinoe asks, while they’re getting dressed. Hope rolls her eyes at the term. “She will be here.” She states, simply. “Aw, Hopey. You’re so whipped.” Alex says, a smirk plastered on her face. Hope shoots her a glare. “Don’t call me that.”

 

“But, Hopey…” Syd pipes in, with a faux-whine. Hope smiles a little bit at the teasing, but doesn’t respond. “Seriously though, Hope, did you guys talk about if you’re playing friends or not?” Hope’s eyes widen at Alex’s question. She hadn’t even thought of that. “It’s just a friendly. I doubt the cameras are gonna be on us during post-game.” Hope mentions.

 

Alex almost lets it go, but she doesn’t want Hope to be caught off-guard if someone snaps a questionable picture. “People have cameras on their phones, Hope. Just be careful if you don’t want the world to know yet. All I’m saying.” She shrugs. Hope pauses, as she’s lacing her boots. She hadn’t thought of that either. She rolls her eyes at herself.

 

“Yea. Thanks, Al.” She says, sincerely. She’ll talk to Kelley about it once they get here. Everyone on the team gets ready at their own, individual, pace. Hope is one of the first who’s ready and she finishes just in time to get a text from Kelley letting her know they’re here.

 

She grabs the two black kits from the equipment guy, who had them made for her. “Thanks, for this.” She says, holding up the jerseys. He nods at her, before going back to preparing for the match. Hope walks out to the back-parking lot, where she had Kelley meet her.

 

 Hope smiles at the sight of them. They’re both wearing blue jeans and sneakers. Kelley’s hair is pulled back in a ponytail, showing off her jawline. Lily’s curly hair is falling to just above her shoulders. Lily runs to Hope, while Kelley’s eyes trail down Hope’s body.

 

Hope catches Lily in her arms and hands her the small jersey. “Here you go.” Hope says. Lily takes her jersey and kicks her feet until Hope puts her back down. She immediately starts putting it on over her short-sleeved shirt, while Kelley shakes her head, knowing they would have to fully change in the bathroom.

 

Kelley walks up to Hope with raised eyebrows. She pulls her into a hug. “You look so fucking good.” She says, softly, in the goalkeeper’s ear. Hope smiles. “You do too.” She says, pulling back and openly checks her out. Kelley swipes the jersey out of Hope’s hand and holds it up to look at it.

 

“You know, Kelley Solo sounds good to me.” She mentions, lightly, as her eyes trail over the last name on her jersey. Hope tilts her head a little bit, before smirking. “Kelley Solo, huh? You’d take my name?” She asks. Kelley nods, without hesitation. “I have nothing connecting me to O’Hara anymore.” She shrugs.

 

Hope bits her bottom lip, but nods. “We need to talk about how we want to handle cameras today.” Hope states. Kelley puckers her lips, in confusion. “Cameras?” Hope nods. “Fans take pictures post-game.”

 

“Oh, right.” Kelley responds. She knew this conversation would come eventually. Hope sighs, but takes the lead. “Let’s just go with it and see what happens. I don’t care if there’s speculation, but I don’t want to out myself yet, either.”

 

Kelley nods. “Okay.” She says, easily. She couldn’t care less if people know about their relationship or not. She just cares that Hope is her girlfriend. “I have to head back in, but I’ll see you post-game, okay?” Hope says to them.

 

Kelley nods. “Be safe. I love you.” She says. She squeezes Hope’s hand. Hope waves ‘goodbye’, before turning and heading back inside.

 

* * *

 

 

Kelley’s ‘be safe’ comment didn’t exactly work, as the game has gotten noticeably chippy. It’s only the 50th minute and there’s been three yellow cards in the game, two for Columbian players and one for Ali, who went in too late on a tackle.

 

Kelley and Lily watch, as a Columbian forward heads towards the box with the ball at her feet. Becky is trailing after her, but the forward has a clear step. Hope reads the play and as soon as she sees the forward lose control of the ball, just a bit, she sprints off her line.

 

The ball comes off the forwards foot too hard on a dribble and she sprints after it. Both players are going in hard for the ball. Hope dives and wraps her arms and body around the ball. The Columbian forward clearly thought she still had a chance at the ball, as she slides into a hard tackle. Her front cleat is up, as she slides towards an already vulnerable Hope.

 

Hope turns her face at the last second, seeing a cleat coming full-speed at her. Kelley watches, with wide-eyes as the player’s cleat goes directly into the side of Hope’s face. The yelp that comes from Hope’s mouth seems to echo in her head. The crowd erupts in protest, as their keeper stays on the ground, body still wrapped, protectively, around the ball. The forward throws her arms up, as if to say ‘I didn’t do anything’.

 

Becky pushes the forward away from Hope, before crouching down to check on her. Ali immediately seconds the push, but doesn’t back down, going in for another. Carli sprints from the midfield, having seen the tackle happen in what seemed like slow-motion.

 

Pinoe is next, who comes in and pushes the forward further away from her fallen teammate, before turning and holding back Ali, who’s throwing expletives at the woman. The official immediately holds up the red card, trying to get the player off the field before the situation escalates further.

 

Hope turns her body, so she’s on her knees and elbows, holding her face in her hands, which are pressed against the pitch. Becky leans down with a hand on the keeper’s back. She looks down and sees what she can of Hope’s face is scrunched in pain. She waves to the trainer, letting him know he’s needed.

 

Carli places a hand on the back of Hope’s neck as soon as she gets to her. “Blood?” She asks her best friend. Hope nods, feeling the sticky wetness covering her hands, which haven’t moved from her face. The last thing Lily needs to see is half of her face covered in blood.

 

“Hopey!” Lily shouts as she sees the collision. Kelley places a hand on Lily’s shoulder. “She’s okay, Lil. Don’t worry.” She says, unconvincing to anyone other than her daughter. ‘Get up, Hope.’ ‘Get up.’ She keeps thinking to herself. Lily starts crying, unconvinced by her mother’s words.

 

Everyone on the team eventually makes their way to Hope, surrounding her so the camera can’t see anything. Once the trainer is there and Hope’s sure she’s covered, she takes her hands away from her face to reveal ugly cleat marks punctured into the side of her face.

 

She gives Carli a look and the midfielder immediately understands. She squeezes her way out of the protective barrier of bodies and jogs to the family section, where she knows Kelley and Lily are watching. Kelley picks Lily up and jogs down the steps.

 

Carli looks into Kelley’s scared eyes with what she hopes is a reassuring look. “She’s okay. She’s awake and talking. Nothing to worry about.” She says. Kelley nods, but isn’t convinced. Carli looks at Lily and smiles. “Hey, kid. Hope is okay. Just a little scratched up, is all.” She says, trying to sooth the scared girl.

 

Kelley watches as Carli jogs back to Hope’s side. She looks to the jumbotron, only to see that the team is blocking any view the cameras may have had. “Fuck.” She says, to herself. Lily’s too distracted to even mention her mother’s bad language.

 

The bartender feels a hand on her shoulder and turns to see Pinoe’s mom, who travelled up for the game. “She’s okay. She’s a big girl, she’s been through worse.” She tries to sooth the woman, who’s clearly still frazzled, even with Carli’s reassurance.

 

Hope sits up, at the trainer’s request. “You’re out. We need to patch this up.” He says, as he inspects the puncture wounds. Becky motions to Tom, letting him know that a backup will be needed. The trainer places a wet towel on Hope’s face. “Just hold that there. Let’s get you off.”

 

Hope nods and is helped to her feet by Becky and Carli. She walks on her own off the pitch to a loud cheer from the crowd, the towel held over her injury. She looks to the family section to see a scared Kelley looking back at her near the railing. She gives her a thumbs up, but she sees that does nothing to sooth her girlfriend. “I’ll be right there.” She says to the trainer, when they get to the tunnel.

 

The game begins again, behind her, as she walks over to Kelley. The sections clap for her, as she passes, but she doesn’t even process it, as she looks Lily who still has big tears running down her face. “I’m alright.” She says loudly, over the crowd noise. Kelley leans against the railing, after putting Lily down. Lily immediately reaches for Hope.

 

“Lil, I have to go get this looked at.” She motions to her face. That only serves to make Lily more upset, as she starts crying harder. “Okay, okay, come here.” She holds the towel with her shoulder and puts her hands up and gives Kelley a look that says ‘give her to me’. Kelley picks Lily up and puts her over the railing for Hope to take her.

 

Hope puts her on her hip. “Look, Lil. I’m okay.” She says, giving her a forced smile. Lily shakes her head and puts a hand to the towel. “Mommy has band aids in her purse. Let her see and she’ll help you.” Hope smiles, genuinely, this time.

 

“I might need a reeeeeally big band aid though, Lil. I don’t think your mommy has one that’s big enough. I’m okay though. I just need to go get it looked at, okay?” Lily puts a hand on Hope’s good cheek, but nods. “Okay.” She leans in and places a wet kiss to Hope’s cheekbone.

 

Hope looks up at Kelley and hands her back up. “I’ll be back on the bench once I’m patched up. I’m okay, Kell. I promise.” She says, looking into hazel eyes. She reached up and gives her forearm a reassuring squeeze. Kelley sighs, but nods. Hope waves, before turning back towards the tunnel. She waves at the crowd, in appreciation, before ducking in towards the trainer’s room.

 

She winces, as he puts antibacterial cream on the wounds. “Lucky you turned your face. Probably would have gotten your eye if you hadn’t.” He mentions. Hope rolls her eyes, but doesn’t respond. She grits her teeth at the stinging sensation. “This should be good.” He says, as he dresses and covers up the wounds. “I’ll look at it tomorrow though. If it looks any worse, you’re going to the hospital.

 

Hope walks back out to the bench and takes a seat next to Ash. The score is 3-0 and it’s just past the 87th minute. Ashlyn grabs Hope’s chin to turn her face towards her. She looks her face, almost half of it covered up. “How bad did that hurt?” She asks, seriously. She winces, as she thinks about that happening to her. No one should slide at a diving goalkeeper. Ever.

 

“It still does.” The brunette answers, before turning back towards the game. When the final whistle finally sounds, the teams shake hands, before turning towards the crowd and starting autographs. Hope heads over to Kelley and Lily.

 

“I’ll meet you at home. I have to sign.” She says, motioning to the crowd. Kelley shakes her head. “You aren’t driving. We’ll wait for you.” She says, leaving no room for argument. Hope sighs, but nods her head. “I’ll be like an hour and a half.”

 

By the time they get back to the apartment, Lily is asleep in the backseat. Hope carries her inside and places her, gently, into bed. Kelley starts making a late dinner for them, since they haven’t eaten since lunch. Hope sits at the kitchen table and watches, knowing that any offered help would be turned away.

 

The freckled woman places the chicken into the oven, before heading over to Hope. She crouches in front of her and places a gentle hand on her covered cheek. Hope looks down. “I need to redress this soon.” She says, softly.

 

“I’ll help.” Kelley says, easily. Hope shakes her head. “It’s gross. I don’t want you seeing that.” She says. Kelley rolls her eyes. “I’m helping.” She states, firmly. Hope grumbles, but doesn’t argue back. They eat in mostly silence, before Kelley leads Hope into the bathroom. Hope hands Kelley the extra supplies that the trainer gave her and sits on the toilet seat cover.

 

Kelley carefully peels the original bandages off Hope’s face, revealing four swollen puncture wounds. “Jesus.” Kelley whispers. Hope keeps her eyes shut, not wanting to see Kelley’s reaction. “He said they should heal for the most part. I just have to take good care of them so they don’t scar.” Kelley nods, as she carefully applies more cream.

 

“I’m sorry.” She says, as Hope grimaces in pain. She finishes up and places a kiss on the now covered wounds. “Does it hurt?” Kelley asks. Hope nods. “I’m gonna take some Advil and go to sleep.” She says, softly. Kelley nods, slowly. “He’s sure you don’t have a concussion?” The goalkeeper nods.

 

“I’m fine, Kell. Come to bed with me?” Kelley sighs, but complies. She helps Hope change her shirt, so she doesn’t mess with the bandages. Kelley crawls into bed next to Hope and places a kiss on the goalkeeper’s nose. “I’m so glad you’re okay.” She whispers. Hope smiles. “I love you.” She replies.


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let's just pretend like I didn't disappear for two months...okay? Okay!
> 
> This is mostly a filler chapter, but at least it's something.

 

 

It’s the day that they leave for Portugal. Hope only has about 2 hours before she needs to leave for the airport to meet the team. Her face is nowhere close to being healed. She still needs to keep it bandaged, but she didn’t have to go to the hospital for it, so she considers it to be a win.

 

Lily’s been clung onto Hope’s side all day. She knows she’s leaving and has been trying to talk Hope out of it. She’s even tried to play sick. Kelley has tried to not think about the fact that Hope would be gone for 3 weeks. She’s gotten so used to having her around. Even though they’ve been more distant lately, she still enjoys knowing she’s just right down the road if she needs her.

 

They say their sad goodbye’s outside of the airport. Kelley drove her there so that Hope didn’t have to pay to park in their lot. Hope leaves with one last glace and a promise to call as soon as they land. Lily cries, which Hope tries to ignore.

 

The team sleeps for most of the flight. Hope sits next to Carli and reads a new book, while Carli listens to music. By the time they land, everyone’s awake and ready to explore. Hope decides to lay low and stay in the hotel. Her roommate for the camp aspect of their trip is Carli, but unfortunately for her, once they leave for the host city, her roommate switches to Ali.

 

She decides to not think about it until the time comes. Ali’s been fine during the past camp so she’s not too worried about it. She calls Kelley and they have a short conversation before Kelley has to leave for work.

 

Throughout camp, Hope’s face heals little by little. She finally gets to the point in the healing process where she no longer needs to keep it covered, which makes everything easier as she doesn’t need to worry about changing the dressings multiple times a day.

 

Hope’s made sure to call Kelley at least once a day. Sometimes they speak, other times they end up playing phone tag. Regardless, so far, so good. It’s the end of camp and Hope has just arrived back at her room. She tries phoning Kelley for the third time today and it (again) goes straight to voicemail.

 

She tries not to worry too much about it. It isn’t long before they’re on the bus and headed to the host city. The ride isn’t too long, thankfully, and before they know it they’re heading up to their new rooms with their new roommates.

 

She and Ali work on unpacking. They haven’t said much to each other, but it’s not awkward. They simply work around each other and try to get settled before their first match tomorrow. Ali mumbles something about going to find coffee, before leaving Hope alone in their room.

 

Hope sighs and looks out the window. The view is nothing to be excited about, as the room looks over the parking lot. She picks up her phone and checks to make sure Kelley hasn’t tried to call. When she sees no new notifications, it only serves to worry her more. Usually when Kelley doesn’t answer, she’ll call back within a few hours. She hasn’t heard from her since last night.

 

She’s just about to try her luck again and call her, but a knock on the door distracts her. “Heard from her yet?” Pinoe asks, as Hope lets her in. The goalkeeper shakes her head and Megan can sense the anxiety coming off Hope in waves.

 

“I’m sure she’s fine. Maybe the kid is sick or something.” Hope’s eyes widen and Pinoe internally berates herself for putting that idea in Hope’s head. “Shit.” The taller woman whispers. “She’s fine, Hope. Kelley would call if anything happened.” Pinoe sits down on Ali’s bed, while Hope checks her phone for the 132nd time today.

 

“It’s just weird. If she doesn’t call before the game tomorrow, I’ll know something’s wrong.” The brunette thinks, out loud. Megan nods, knowing Kelley wouldn’t ignore Hope before a match unless something happened.

 

They sit there for about an hour, watching reality TV. Hope tries distracting herself from the issue at hand, which works for a little while. Once she finds her mind wondering to everything that could have happened to make Kelley not return her calls, she knows she needs to try something to clear her head.

 

“I need to go. I’m gonna go for a walk.” The brunette states. Pinoe nods, but makes no move to leave. Hope grabs her room key and her phone, before heading out. The elevator ride feels like it takes forever. She finally makes it to the bottom floor and the doors open to reveal Ali on the other side, waiting to head back upstairs.

 

Hope doesn’t spare her a glance, before walking past her. “Wait, Hope. What’s wrong?” The defender asks, knowingly. She may have ruined her chance with Hope, but that doesn’t mean she didn’t love her at one point. She knows just by the look on the woman’s face that something’s happened.

 

She follows quickly after the taller woman. She catches up with her rather quickly and glances up at her face. To anyone else, Hope looks stone-cold and emotionless, but Ali knows better. Ali sighs and reaches out to grab Hope’s wrist. “Slow down. Tell me what’s wrong.” She says, pulling Hope back towards her. When she doesn’t get a response, Ali leads Hope to a nearby bench and gently nudges her down so she’s sitting.

 

“I haven’t heard from her since last night.” She states, as a preface. Ali tries to hold back a smirk. “And?” Ali asks. Hope rolls her eyes. “She always calls me in the morning and lets me talk to Lily before she goes to school.” The defender nods, in understanding.

 

“So, you’re worried.” She says, knowingly. Hope nods and looks down the sidewalk. “What if something happened?” Ali shakes her head. “It’s only been a day, Hope, she could have just gotten busy. Don’t go crazy over it.” The goalkeeper shrugs. “I just need to walk.”

 

Ali nods. “Don’t be too long, it’s gonna get dark.” She states. She watches as Hope disappears in a crowd of people, before heading inside.

 

Hope walks until she sees the sun start falling. She thinks about everything that could have gone wrong, everything that may have happened, played every scenario out in her head. She finally makes it back to the hotel and as she steps into the lobby, she sees all her teammates standing awkwardly off to the side.

 

“What’s going on?” The goalkeeper asks. Everyone looks at each other and just as Carli opens her mouth to say something, she hears it. “Hopey!” She hears, as she sees a blonde headed girl poke her way through the legs of her teammates. Hope blinks a few times, as Lily runs her small legs to Hope as fast as she can.

 

“What? What’re you…” She trails off. She picks Lily up and hugs her tightly. She faintly hears the sound of her teammates cheering and laughing, but she’s far too surprised to pay them any mind. “How are you here?” Lily laughs in Hope’s ear. “Hey, babe.” She hears Kelley’s voice from behind her and whips her body around to see her girlfriend standing right in front of her.

 

“What? You’re-how did you do this?” Hope stumbles over her words, as she pulls Kelley to her. “We figured, after that last game, we needed to be able to see you play at least a full match.” Kelley says, smiling into Hope’s shoulder. She pulls away from Kelley to look at her. The shorter woman doesn’t hesitate, before leaning up to kiss her girlfriend.

 

Lily interrupts them with soft pats on both of their cheeks. “I can’t believe you’re here. I was so worried that I hadn’t heard from you.” Hope explains. She notices her teammates dispersing from the lobby. Kelley smiles up at her and cups her face with one hand. “I’m sorry. I figured us being here would be a good enough surprise for the missed phone calls.”

 

Hope nods, enthusiastically. “Hopey, the airplane had movies!” Lily exclaims. Hope laughs and Kelley looks at her daughter, lovingly. “We watched Finding Nemo twice.” The bartender explains, giving Hope a look that’s less-than-enthusiastic.

 

“Come to the room.” Hope says. Kelley nods. “We’re in room 210.” The bartender mentions, as they get on the elevator. “Oh, then we’ll just go to your room. I’m not sure if Ali’s in mine or not.” Hope explains. She doesn’t really want to have both her girlfriend and her ex-girlfriend in the same room at the same time. Kelley nods, in agreement, before hitting the button for the second floor.

 

Lily babbles in Hope’s ear. She tells her all about the plane ride, the movies they watched, and the strange man that picked them up and brought them to the hotel. “Who else knew about this?” Hope asks, as they make their way into the room. Kelley grimaces. She knows Hope doesn’t like being left out of the loop. “Everyone.” She drags the word out with a smile, hoping to charm Hope into not being upset.

 

Hope’s eyes widen. “Everyone? I talked to Pinoe about how worried I was! I talked to ALI about how worried I was!” She exclaims. She’s not yelling, but she’s over-enunciating her words enough for Kelley to know Hope isn’t happy at not being told.

 

“It was a surprise, Hope, you can’t be mad.” Kelley says, simply. She looks at Hope challengingly, daring the goalkeeper to try and be upset when they just flew halfway across the world to be with her. Hope looks down, in defeat. “I know, I know. I’m not mad. I’m happy you’re here. I’m just embarrassed that I was so overdramatic when they knew where you were.”

 

Hope places Lily on the bed. The child immediately jumps up to show Hope the snow globe she bought at the airport. Kelley smiles at Hope, lovingly. “You were that worried?” She asks, curiously. Hope feels her cheeks get hot, but she nods. “I thought something happened.”

 

Kelley lets out a breathy laugh and approaches Hope, while Lily is still digging in her suitcase. She pulls the goalkeeper into a soft, loving kiss. “Well, we’re here now. We’re equipped with our jerseys and all.” Hope smiles at that. She checks the time, noting it’s almost curfew. She sighs. “I have to head back to the room soon.” She mentions.

 

Lily runs to Hope, snow globe in hand. “Look, Hopey!” She says, excitedly. Hope looks at the snow globe and she and Lily discuss it for about five minutes before Hope finally stands up. “Okay, I have to go. We’ll be up early for breakfast tomorrow. Match starts at 1.” Kelley nods. “We’ll be ready.”

 

They say their goodbyes and Hope begrudgingly makes her way back to her room. She doesn’t want to leave them yet, as they’ve only just been reunited. But it helps Hope to know that they’re just one floor away from each other, rather than a few countries away.

 

 


End file.
